Tides
by Ruasah
Summary: Addy thought she has seen it all. Growing up on the Grand Line sort of does that to you. But when she joins Luffy and the Straw Hats on a journey to find the legendary One Piece she ends up with more than she could have ever dreamed of. Adventure, friendship, suffering and loss. Together her and the Straw Hats go through it all in their journey to the end of the Grand Line.
1. Tides Come In Part 1

_Author's note:_

 _Updated: This story was originally called Tides Come In. I have decided that instead of posting individual stories I am going to bring it all together into one large saga. So far this contains the original story Tides Come In as well as the first chapter of Empty Minds, Empty Boxes._

 _Original_ _: I have had this idea for a story for a long time now. This is a very heavy OC story. It is going to be mostly from her perspective. Its starts basically right after the Straw Hats recruit Usopp and will continue until Luffy becomes Pirate King. It is based on the anime and later a lot of the lines will be taken directly from the episode. It will build up to a Zoro/OC so if for whatever reason you cannot stand OC pairings than this is most likely not for you. As always review, let me know what I need to improve on._

 _This is the remastered version. All that has been changed from the original is grammar._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

In the middle of East Blue rests an island with only one village. While there were many islands with only one village, this one was different. Surround by perfectly blue seas that somehow always remain calm, it never experienced anything more than the mildest of weather. The beaches glittered with golden sands, blowing palm trees that let out the faint smell of coconuts and dates, and the village parked just off the shore to avoid the high tide, nestled in the sand like everything else was all the perfect picture of serenity. Surrounded by high cliffs the island is only reachable through a stretch of beach with a small dock for ships. Yet there was only one village, scraping the edge of what could be called a town. With wooden buildings, cobble streets, and for the most part friendly people, it was like your average village in East Blue. It was only when you looked closer that the problems stood out. The people though smiling also looked like they had seen better days. The beach was littered with shipwrecks, some old some new and all of them raided for all their value. Some were only frames left, ready to dissolve in the ocean.

There are worse things than being stuck in a village in the weakest sea in the world but for Adamaris, known as Addy to most people, it feels like absolute dread. Right now she would give anything to be out on the sea but without a crew she was dead in the water. She signed swirling her glass around completely lost in her own thoughts.

"The right person has got to be in the Grand Line. It's my only chance now," she mumbled to herself. "Finding a crew dumb enough to go to the Grand Line is a challenge itself, finding a crew in East Blue, forget it. My best chance would be to head either for South or North and try to find someone there to take me. Though that means going over the Red Line which is almost impossible. And passage to the Grand Line is expensive. Pirates won't take anyone and no one else will go. If I access the family funds, then She will find me. Lucky I ended up here. Got to love traders and the odd stops that they make." She drained her glass and signaled to the barkeep for another.

Paisley was the owner of the only inn and therefore also the only tavern in the village. With her bright red hair and freckles, she stood out in a crowd. Always dressed in something green and with an impish smile Paisley gave the feeling that if you messed with her you would regret it. The tavern potion was large enough to hold at least two dozen people, though it rarely got that full. Tables were strewn about in no particular pattern, looking like they were cobbled together from driftwood. Behind the bar was the various bottles and brews, shelves recently full due to the supply ship coming in. Signs from the various shipwrecked ships lined the walls. Paisley was a bit of a collector.

"I will probably end up taking the next ship out of here, than ditch them before they make me pay for the ride. Dishonest I know but I don't have much of a choice." Addy groaned burying her head in her hands. She was on the side of being just tipsy enough to almost be drunk which for her was a rarity. Around this time she was usually completely plastered. "Drunk, drunk is good."

"Whatever you say Addy, need another?" Paisley asked. She had gotten used to Addy drunken ramblings. Once she got tipsy, Addy would just start speaking whatever came to her head.

"I thought I had been here long enough for you to know my answer already," she replied another glass already being poured for her. "How much do I owe you?"

"Not a single beli, I thought you have been here long enough to figure that out."

"Please I do feel bad for drinking until I basically pass out each night."

"You saved my kid, you could drink the entire stock and I would still serve you the next day. Plus right now you're the only one that is keeping most of us in business." Bandits had been plaguing the island, robbing it for all that its worth, which wasn't much. Rumors of treasure brought them here and they apparently won't leave until they find it, making the lives of the people miserable in the meantime. At least until Addy came along.

"Any potential customers?" Paisley asked.

"Not unless a bunch of morons decide to show up randomly. The merchant is leaving in like a week or so. Closest job as far as I know."

"MEAT," someone screamed as they ran through the door. Everyone in the tavern turned towards the intruder, prepared for the bandits. Wearing a straw hat, red vest, and short blue pants, he sat down, and looked like he was about to start eating the table. They were new; the bandits would have invaded. A guy with a really long nose and really black, poofy hair chased after him, and sat down with a huff. What caught everyone's attention however the next person who walked in. Pirate Hunter Roronoa Zoro.

"Guess people weren't actually lying when they said he carried three katana," Addy whispered.

"I would not mind seeing at least one of his swords in action," Paisley whispered back.

"Agreed," though Addy was suspicious, he was not someone to be messed with at least as far as the rumors said. Not that she put much stock into them, but it pays to be careful and looks can be deceiving. The last person to come in was a girl with bright orange hair and she looked pissed.

"LUFFY," she screamed before conking the straw hat kid on the head.

"OW, Nami, that hurt." The table dissolved into bickering as Paisley who was probably the first to recover from the guests, wandered over and asked what they wanted. Addy kept one eye on them, in case they were trouble. She drained her glass and poured herself another, Paisley was kind enough to leave the bottle.

There was only a few people in here. Besides Addy there was the old fisherman whose name changed every time Addy talked to him. The group playing cards in the corner and the merchant of the week who was trying to sell stuff that no one really wanted. Hadley, Paisley daughter was running around somewhere as well. Cute kid but always getting underfoot.

After they ordered what seemed like every kind of meat and hard liquor possible, much to the chagrin of Nami who managed to look both angry and amused, Paisley left to go tell the cook. Hadley decided to come out from her hiding spot, which Addy still hasn't figured out and question the new people.

"Who are you guys?" she asked in her endearing tone. She was the sweetest kid basically a clone of her mother. Hoping they weren't the violent type of people. Addy prepared to jump in case of the worst but the straw hat guy… Luffy, just laughed.

"We're pirates," he laughed grabbing the food that Paisley was just putting down. Man he could eat. Thank the stars the cook was fast. "That's Nami, Usopp and Zoro." Pointing to each of them in turn, in between shoving food in his mouth. "And I am Luffy."

"Wow where are you guys going…"

"To the Grand Line." Huh, that was interesting, Addy thought. They were heading the same direction that she was. Perhaps it would be worth something to travel with them. At least until she got to the Grand Line. "I am going to be King of the Pirates." And that idea just died… Addy chocked on her drink. She covered up with a cough though she could feel Zoro glance at her.

There was no way that spindly punk was going to be King of the Pirates, she thought. He would die way before he reached Raftel. Ocean, before he even made it to the Grand Line.

"Really because that is where Addy is from. She has been looking for a way to go home," Hadley stated. Time for an exit strategy. Skipping the glass, Addy just drained the bottle before Hadley finished her story about how Addy rescued her from the hands of the bandits. Addy did not like attention at all. Makes it harder to hide from certain people. She figured she would disappear until the pirates decided to leave the bar, than come back and sneak into her room. Work things out in the morning after the hangover. She was about to get up when she felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. She turned and cursed her luck.

"Oi, where do you think your going Sweetie?" a rough voice said. "We never paid you back for what you did to our mates this morning." Dagmar and his cronies were here. You would think after the last several times he would learn not to fight Addy. Well fight in the loosest sense, in order to fight you have to actually manage to hit your opponent. With all the talk of the Grand Line and Pirate King Addy had been distracted and completely missed them coming in. The drinking did not help either which was probably the major reason she missed them coming in entirely. All eyes were on her now. She was hoping to pass the defeat of bandits off as a children's lie but it looked like it would not be the case. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Zoro reaching for his swords and Luffy pulling his arm back as if to punch someone, which would be insane considering the distance between him and the bandits. She laughed. If they think they can take these guys on before she can finish them off they have another thing coming.

She stepped on Dagmar foot before elbowing him in the stomach sending him to the ground. Sensing two of his henchmen come at her from behind, she quickly rotated to face them. A large crack echoed in the room as she sent the two guys flying with large gashes in there chest. Her whip in hand now she wrapped up one of the goons arms and sent him crashing into his mates, now lying in a heap on the floor. A few more quick strikes insured that they would not get up again.

The whip made out of some sort of black leather, shined in the light and was about as long as two of her. Ducking a sword slash before coiling her whip around the attacker's legs also sent him into the growing pile. The two guys left standing looked at her nervously. She cracked her whip in the air and they flinched, backing away from her as much as possible. Flicking her whip she wrap up one guy and spinning him like a top while smashing the hilt into the other guy's head before he could blink.

"You think you guys would learn by now," she said. "What is this the 20th time now? You seriously have to pick up some new moves or something. This is embarrassing for everyone." She wrapped her whip in a coil and placed it on her right hip. "At least I improved my time. Got it down from a minute to 50 seconds. Well until next time guys." She could feel the pirate's eyes on her, two in shock, one in surprise and slight admiration and one in excitement. The rest of the patrons had returned to what they were doing, this was becoming a nightly event. Another reason she needed to leave. Soon enough they would start sending out the stronger guys, the ones that she couldn't take down on her own. Well while she was drunk that is.

As she walked outside there was a warm breeze blowing. She turned towards the beach heading down a path well worn by footprints. The stars were out tonight, the moon bright. Out here it was quieter; most of the people were home getting ready to sleep. She was surprised to hear footsteps, turning to look for the source of the sound and almost ran into Luffy who was standing right behind her. Wearing possibly the biggest grin, he pointed at her chest.

"You will be our new nakama." She stood there trying to connect her brain to her mouth.

"What? Why?" she replied.

"Because you're cool." If that was the only explanation needed.

"Umm no… I don't think so," She muttered but apparently he didn't hear her. He just grabbed her arm and started dragging her back inside, with a surprising amount of strength for someone so scrawny.

Next thing she knew she was seated in a chair looking at the others with various expressions, mostly amused.

"She is our new nakama," he stated before continuing to eat by the shovel full. "That's Nami…."

"Yeah, I caught who all of you were earlier…" she said. "Look I don't know if you know who I am…"

"Addy right?" Nami asked. She nodded, no point in lying now. "Apparently you are from the Grand Line."

"Yes, and before you ask no, I don't know how to get there. This is my first time out of the Grand Line."

Nami narrowed her eyes. "Damn I was hoping you would. Wait… can't you enter the same way you came out?"

Addy laughed, "Absolutely no chance, unless you want to end up dead at the bottom of Ocean." She thought about the massive current that brought her here. Royally screwed would not begin to cover what would happen to anyone who was not a skilled helmsman if they should enter the current.

Nami huffed. "Do you at least know your way around the Grand Line?" She sounded like she was trying to bargain with Addy, or trying to recruit her. Either way it's not going to work.

"I am no navigator of course but I can guide the ship through Ocean if need be," Addy said.

"You're a helmsman?"

"Mate I am most likely the best helmsman you will ever meet."

"Great.." Luffy said. "The Pirate King needs the best crew." Addy rolled her eyes. Zoro glared at her like she had offended him deeply while Nami looked suspicious. Usopp just seemed nervous and kept glancing around like someone was going to come out an attack them. With the other patrons tossing the bandits out, Addy doubted that would happen.

"I don't know… how good of a helmsman can you be." Nami asked.

"You'll see how good I am once I get your ship past the currents surrounding the island."

"What?"

"You saw coming in how the shore is mostly rocky with large cliffs and that there was only this tiny stretch of beach where you could dock."

They all nodded.

"Well due to the nature of the currents surrounding this island, one can't actually leave they way they came, otherwise you will end up smashed against the rocks."

"Your joking…" Nami replied dubiously.

"Actually it is quite well know, I am surprised you don't know about it."

"Wait," Usopp asked. "So why do these buildings have names on them? Or the bar?" He pointed towards the bar, where the name Titanic, though faded was clearly legible.

"All the buildings here are made out of ship wrecks," Addy replied. They all stared at her.

"All of…" Ussop suddenly looked terrified though he started covering it up with an elaborate story about a ship wreck, treasure, and three ducks. They all ignored him except for Luffy who seemed absolutely fascinated.

"Ask anyone around here," Addy stated. "Now of course I will be willing to guide your ship out for a nominal fee…"

"Out of the question." Nami slammed her fist on the table making everything rattle. "There is no way I am going to fall for this."

"Nami," Usopp said interrupting his own story or perhaps he finished, Addy wasn't paying much attention to anything. "Think about this. How else are we supposed to get off the island?" Nami hesitated slightly but still looked unsure.

"Don't believe me then. Talk to the townsfolk. Start with Paisley, she is the one who owns this place." She pointed to Paisley who just shook her head fondly at her. "I will be around the village if you change your mind." Addy got up and headed for the stairs. Forget the beach, bed is where she was headed. She could feel a headache rising and needed sleep.

"Oi, where are you going?" Luffy called as if he was surprised. Maybe she wasn't the only one who wasn't paying attention.

"Um, Luffy, I don't think she will be joining us." Usopp said.

"Yes she will…"

She left before she could hear the rest of the conversation. Paisley looked at her worried. She smiled and signaled that she was going to bed. Climbing up the stair to where the rooms were, avoiding the creaks in the wood, she went to her room at the end of the hall.

The room was large, enough to fit several people. With a queen sized bed and its own toilet, it was perhaps the nicest room in the inn. Made out of some of the nicer wood, there was a window looking over to the sea. Addy stared watching the waves for a little while before drawing in the pretty blue curtains.

She took off her blue tunic and rolled down her stockings. Grabbing a pair of shorts she slipped those on, along with a grey cami. Placing her whip on the bed side table, within easy reach, she opened the curtains letting the moonlight flow in, and lied down in bed on top of the covers. Normally she would prefer sleeping outside but she already got asked enough questions by the villagers. Don't want to draw anymore suspicion.

Taking the necklace that she normally kept hidden under her clothes, she held it up in the moonlight. It was a simple thing, a white seashell shaped like a fan. Addy opened it up, revealing it to be a locket. There was only one picture though there was room for two. The picture was of two smiling girls. One was streamlined, though clearly fit, with long black hair, pale skin, and ocean green eyes, looking bright. Addy smiled as she looked at herself. It felt like it had been forever, though the picture was only a year old. The other was darker, slightly shorter, and more muscular with brown hair and eyes that looked like chocolate. They were standing on a ship, Ocean behind them and their arms around each other. Addy traced her finger over the dark skin girl tears forming in her eyes.

"I promise Riley. I will make it happen. Even if it costs me everything."


	2. Tides Come In Part 2

_Authors Note:_

 _So I was going to upload this later in the week but decided to do it now. I am actually super excited about this story. As always please review so that I can improve._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

She woke up with a pounding headache like drums vibrating in her head. Grabbing the glass of water and the pills that Paisley had been leaving out for her almost every night since she got here she downed it and then poured herself another from the pitcher. Groaning into her pillows, she waited until the pain would go away, the water would do that, the pills were just window dressing. She wondered how late in the day it was.

Managing to stumble out of bed she looked out the window to see that the sun was almost in the middle of the sky. Better than expected then. She put back on the clothes she wore the previous night, not caring. Walking down the stairs she could see Paisley had already brought out her usual, broiled salmon and dried seaweed along with her favorite kind of white wine. Paisley was probably in the back doing inventory. From the commotion Addy heard last night it seemed like the pirates had almost eaten the entire stock which would be absolutely absurd. She glanced around and saw that the pirates were nowhere to be found. It struck her that she would probably hear them before she saw them. Most likely back at their ship or going around town. Chances are she would run into them again when she went out. Perhaps she would go to the beach; a swim might do her some good. Clear her head a little, it's been awhile since she could think clearly.

Addy felt like she was living in a perpetual fog. Grabbing the bottle she hesitated slightly before pouring herself a glass. She knew exactly why she felt this way, but it was better than the alternative.

Just as she was about to starting eating, she heard a loud crash coming from outside and a woman screamed. Addy jumped up in a flash and raced through the door. The bandits decided to come by… again. This time there was a lot of them though, at least 20. There was some she did not even recognize. The women turned out to be Jacinth, the owner of the flower shop next door. She was lying on the ground, shielding her arm. Addy could see blood streaming down. Her attacker had his sword raised, ready to run Jacinth through. So Addy did what any reasonable smart person would do, launching herself at him knocking him into two of the others and sending them crashing into the ground.

"Starting the party without me?" she asked twirling her whip. Addy did not give them a chance to response, just leapt in. These guys may have been stronger than her but she had speed on her side, despite her delayed reactions. Dodge, pivot, weave, she managed to evade the blows making them hit each other in some cases. Her whip was like a blur sending men back with gashes and howls of pain. Loud cracks entered through the air causing some of them to cover their ears. She was like flowing water, dancing around them, untouchable.

"ADDY!" she heard a scream pierce the air. Dagmar was holding Hadley by the collar of her shirt. Tears were trickling down her face and her arms and legs were cut up. Addy didn't think, but moved. Using some guy's head as a launch pad she jumped towards Dagmar. Wrapping her whip around his upper torso and arm, she twisted her body dragging the leather across his skin. It was like sandpaper being rubbed against flesh skin at the speed of sound.

"Lautan Pakem," Addy yelled out. Dagmar dropped Hadley screaming in pain and she managed to catch Hadley before she hit the ground. "Kembali," Addy called, twisting her whip once again, in the same speed it uncurled around his body, leaving him a sobbing bloody mess on the ground.

"Hadley, you alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, uh Addy what are you going to do now?" Her tears stopped but her lip was trembling. Thankfully her cuts were not that bad, though it still made Addy worried. She looked around her and swallowed. Addy was completely irrevocably surrounded. On her own she would have been able to hold them off but with Hadley in her arms, there was no chance. Plus the lack of alcohol was starting to bother her, she could feel herself twitching. Even if she let Hadley go, there were going to catch her immediately.

"Hadley whatever you do don't get up okay," Addy said as the guys closed in around her. She kicked up some dust on the ground, blinding the men closest to her and she placed Hadley on the ground, before throwing herself over her, using her body as a shield.

"Now's our chance, get her men," one of the guys yelled. Addy sucked in as much breath as she could and prepared for the worst. Pain raced up her side as someone delivered a kick to her ribs, than to her other side as well. Soon the pain was everywhere. Tasting dirt and blood all she could do was lie there. She just had to hold on long enough for them to get bored, then she can go curl up in a corner and die. Suddenly she couldn't breathe. Something was around her neck, chocking her. Gasping she struggled as hard as she could, twisting and turning her neck trying to throw her attacker off while still covering Hadley. Something snapped and the pressure released. Taking a deep breath of sweet air, before her head was kicked to the ground. She saw multi colored spots dancing in her eyes. The noise that was so loud was now only a dull roar. The smell of blood and dirt clogged her senses. There was no chance now. She was going to die here. Curling tighter around Hadley, she waited for it to be over, wanted it to be over.

"Gomu, Gomu No…" she heard and some of the pain stopped. Not daring to look up, she kept her head down. She heard what sound like several guys getting punched repeatedly, the clashing of swords, and… gunpowder. Perhaps she was kicked in the head to many times. It was a while before she noticed that there was no more pain coming, and everything was silent as well.

Taking her chances, she rolled over groaning with the effort, letting Hadley run into her mother's arms. Her vision was blurry but she could vaguely see that the bandits surrounded her, unconscious. A hand grasped her arm, and she formed a fist, prepared to punch the person.

"Relax," the voice said. The hand was calloused and the voice was gruff. Glancing at the direction of the voice all she could see was green. He took his other hand and gently unfurled her fist. She could offer no struggle, though she is not sure she wanted to.

"Zoro, be careful with her. She badly hurt," another voice called out. Female this time. Addy turned towards the voice but all she could see was the orange blur.

She felt two arms around her, one supporting her legs, the other her upper back. Addy was being carried bridal style. She knew he was walking from the way his body was moving but he was keeping her very still. Under normal circumstances, the guy would no longer be alive, but she decided to let it go this one time, since they did just save her life. Pirates come in all shapes and sizes.

Closing her eyes, she just relaxed to the sway of his arms. Everything was numb, adrenaline was kicking in, the pain would come later. It wasn't until they placed her in the bed in her room did she realized her carried her into the tavern and into her room. He let her down softly as if she was something incredibly precious.

"Water," Addy called out hoarsely.

"Here," Nami said. Holding her head up, and bringing the water to her lips. Addy chugged four glasses down.

"You drink a lot," Zoro said. Addy would have rolled her eyes and offered a sarcastic comment but right now the fatigue was taking over and it was taking all her energy to remain awake.

"Oi, how she doing?" A new voice said.

"Luffy, be quiet," Nami answered. "Can't you see she is exhausted?"

"Did you find those cowards who ran off?" Zoro asked.

"No, they like disappeared into the trees," Luffy answered. Coming closer towards the bed, he looked over Addy, his usual jovial face worried.

"They know the forest pretty well," another voice echoed. Since all others were accounted for it must have been Usopp. "No tracks, not a clue as to where they could be."

Zoro grunted, and turned back towards Addy who was now on her what had to be here 6th glass. Addy weakly grasped Nami's arm, signaling her to stop.

"What? Why did you save me?" She stuttered out. They only met her yesterday and she wasn't the most pleasant person. Nami helped her lay back down and all Addy wanted to do was sleep.

"We're nakama," Luffy said, the grin back on his face.

"Idiot.. I am not your…" Addy did not get a chance to finish her statement. Sleep claimed her instead.

When she woke up it was dark, everything ached, her head was exploding, and her mouth felt like dirt. She was covered in bandages which hindered her movement even more. Groaning she tried to lift herself out of bed only to find a pair of hands helping her up. She glanced and saw it was Nami. Looking around the room, she could see that all the guys were asleep, in various positions that aren't exactly conducive to sleeping.

"Have you guys been up here the entire time?" Addy asked.

"Yep, Luffy insisted on staying and the rest of us followed suit," Nami answered.

"Well that's different. Thank you for saving me."

"Oh don't worry about it, we would have done it for anybody." Somehow Addy felt like she was telling the truth. "Though I am going to charge you for it." Addy was not sure she was joking or not.

"It's not every day that you run into pirates that rescue people instead of killing them. Tell you what however, since you did save my life, I will pilot your ship out of here. No cost. Once I feel better. That would do as payment." It was the least she could do. Perhaps it would give her a chance to get off the island.

"I think you will have a harder time getting off the ship than staying on." Nami brought up a glass of water and Addy took it sipping.

"That might not be a bad thing. Think I could convince your captain to let me stay on, at least until the next habitable island you get to."

"I don't see why not."

Addy sighed. Everything ached and hurt but at least she could see again. It would be a week at least until she was better. Less if she could get into the ocean. However she was trembling and shaking as well and those weren't from the injuries.

"Nami in my pack there is a flask, can you…" She didn't need to finish her sentence; Nami got up and gave it to her. She unscrewed the lid and drained its contents. She should probably not be drinking right now, but it is the only way to make the shaking stop, and to stop thinking and remembering. Addy placed it on the bedside table, feeling better in some ways, though way worse in others.

Now that she was no longer jittering and thinking about her next fix she felt like something was missing. A familiar weight was gone. Her whip was on the table, she was wearing another set of clothes, courtesy of Nami she hoped. She would patch up the ones that got ripped apart next time she got the chance. It was one of the few sets that she managed to keep when she got left here in East Blue. It would be an absolute nightmare to replace. She reached up to grab her locket and felt nothing there.

"NO!" she yelled, jumping out of bed, only to collapse on the floor, her body unable to handle her own weight. "It can't be gone."

Everyone else jumped awake as well, prepared for battle. When they saw her on the floor they relaxed though their curiosity was peaked.

"Addy? What's wrong?" Nami asked knelling down next to her.

Addy grasped at her shoulders. "I had a locket around my neck. Silver, shaped like a sea shell. Have you seen it?"

"No…"

"It must be somewhere… have to find it." Addy managed to get up and successful stand as she walked to the door.

"Hey, calm down," Usopp said. "You can get another one?"

"No I can't!" she yelled, turning towards him. She would get right in his face if she had the strength to move. "That locket is everything, my most precious treasure, and if I have to dig up every inch of this island with a rusty spoon to find it I will." Addy was heaving now, her whole body was trembling, for once not due to any lack of drink. The agitation was taking its toll and fear took over her eyes. She was clutching her chest, where it should be, digging her nails into her skin. It was starting to break under the pressure, blood tricking down. "I need to find it."

"The bandits took it," a small voice said. Addy turned and looked at the doorway, Hadley was standing right outside.

"What did you say Hadley?" Addy asked shuffling towards her, grasping the door frame to keep herself upright.

"When the bandits were running off, I saw one of the guys carrying your necklace. The chain was broken though."

Addy thought how they could have gotten ahold of it, than she remember the chocking and the struggle. She almost felt like crying. Collapsing against the wall, she placed her head in her hands and brought her knees up. There was no way she was getting it back. While she could take down most of the bandits, there was no way she could fight the leader, or his lieutenant.

"We will find it," Luffy said. Apparently, she said something because he was kneeling beside her smiling.

"How?" Addy asked. "No one knows where they are. You could be wandering the mountains and forests for days. That is not even bringing up all the tunnels. Even if I did find them out of sheer dumb luck, I cannot defeat them."

"I will," Luffy replied. "They hurt you and no one hurts my nakama." In that moment she believed him. Not only about finding the locket, but what he had been saying since they first met. There was something about him, despite the fact that he looked like an overgrown child she could see something in his eyes. She looked at the others, Nami, who looked excited , at what Addy was unsure, Zoro, with a glint in his eyes as if happy for a chance to fight, and Usopp, who was pretending to be brave but she could see his legs shaking. And finally back to Luffy, with his broad grin and straw hat. Perhaps, he was the one. The one she promised to find for Riley and herself, so long ago. She might as well take the chance. There was only one way to find out.

"I don't know what I am thinking, perhaps my brain was rattled around too much." She took a deep breath as if to stabilize herself. "Alright, when do we leave?"


	3. Tides Come In Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Five days. It was five days before they could leave and every hour felt like a century. Mostly because it took five days before Addy could walk around without falling over. The bandits did a number on her and she could still feel it in her movements. It would be awhile before she would be fully recovered but she could not afford to wait that long. Perhaps she could sneak a dip into some body of water once they set off. That would help things immensely.

Every moment she went without her treasure made her tense and agitated. She probably would have gone completely nuts if it wasn't for the Straw Hats. It was still a surprise that Luffy was the captain. She stared at them all slack jawed when they told her and she had to ask three times to make sure.

They rarely left her alone, one of them was always with her. Usually it was Nami, but the others came around every so often as well. As much as she didn't want to admit it, she enjoyed talking to them. It was really strange.

With Usopp, he was always spinning wild stories about the great adventures he had been in. Really drawn out elaborate tales, though she knew he was lying. Didn't stop her from getting invested however, he was a good story teller, and it sounded like he had been doing this for a while. It distracted her for the most part, and she was grateful for that much at least.

Nami by far was the easiest to talk with, though that was not saying much. Apparently she was the navigator for the Straw Hats, though she was only working for them temporarily. Addy ignored that, she could tell from the way the crew interacted that she was far from temporary. From the way that she clicked with Addy, it was clear that she need some girl on girl talk, and Addy happily obliged, it being awhile for her as well. It was nice to talk to someone who understood.

Zoro did not as much talk as drink with her, something else she was grateful for. Sometimes it was good to be with someone without actually talking, something that Zoro provided easily. He either spent his time sleeping, mediating, or training. Watching him train was like looking at a piece of art. Zoro was something to behold, though that could just be Addy's bias talking. She always did like the larger, more muscular guys. The fact that he was a swordsman took the cake.

Luffy… well he was Luffy. Addy had no idea what to make of him. He wanted to be the Pirate King. His hat was his greatest treasure, something that Addy actually understood, and she was nakama, despite how many times she told him that there alliance was temporary, lasting until she got to the next island. He was always bouncing around, and when he wasn't eating, or trying to get her to eat which he said "would make her feel better," he was rambling about something else. Addy had seen little children that were calmer than he was, but it was part of his charm, and Addy found herself looking forward to his visits despite Nami's various warnings. The Straw Hats were an odd bunch, yet they all seem to fit together.

She has grown so accustomed to them, that in the rare moments when she was actually alone, it felt strange. Like they should be here by her side. Or maybe her by theirs. Addy shook off this idea. It probably because she has spent pretty much the last year alone. With good reason. Nakama, friends, family, it's a thing of the past. Something to be buried and not spoken of again. There is too much pain with all that, but for now the Straw Hats were good company at least.

Paisley and Hadley also visited from time to time as well. They were a nice break from the chaos. They seemed to get along with the Straw Hats. Paisley took the time to show Nami around the town while Luffy and Usopp entertained Hadley. It was only because of Paisley that Addy managed to hold it together for as long as she did, by providing her with copious amounts of alcohol to keep the jitters down.

It was the morning of the sixth day, and Addy was ready to leave. Hopefully they would be lucky and find the bandit camp rather quickly. Shouldn't be too hard to find a large group of people. At least that is what Addy hoped for; knowing her luck it would take a month. Luffy did not see like the most patient person… and that was the biggest underestimation she ever made. Luffy was not patient at all. So for all their sakes she hoped that they found them quickly. Considering the fact that the bandits managed to attack them almost every other day or so, it couldn't be that far away, factoring in their travel time. And they always came from the same general direction, South, where most of the mountains and the thick forest lie. Addy figured that was the place that they would most likely be hidden.

Nami agreed with her as well, also saying that they were probably also located near a river, thinking that that they probably sailed up stream. Unlike her, Nami actually remembered that one could sail a ship up the river but you had to either be incredibly skilled or incredibly lucky. Addy hoped it was the latter in the bandit's case. Plus they would need a water source. Addy was grateful to her, two minds were better than one apparently.

While she wished she was a bit more prepared to fight, that would not stop her. That locket was her treasure. The world would end before she would let that go. Slipping on one of her more battle ready outfits, though all this meant was that it would not get in her way while fighting. It was a dark blue tank top with rolling waves embroider on the front. She also donned on light blue leggings, one that was immune to rips and tears, as well as tannish boots that she could quickly slip off if need be. Addy hated shoes, hated the feeling of her feet being confined but if they were going to go hiking through the wilderness she was going to need them. Her tan belt which she equipped her whip fit snugly around her waist. Picking up her bag with everything she need for the trip, she felt at ease. She was ready. Minus the fact that she was still having trouble moving quickly.

The Straw Hats agreed to meet her down stairs and for a moment she was actually looking forward to going on an adventure with them. It's been a long time since she has been on an adventure. But the gravity of the situation hit her and she opened the door and left the room, walking carefully so not to aggravate any of her injuries.

When she got down stairs Luffy was all raring to go and frankly Addy was right with him.

"Yosh, lets go," he called out causing the other patrons to stare at him like he was some kind of crazy person. Which to be fair he was.

"Is he always like this?" Addy whispered to Nami.

"You have no idea," she whispered back. Apparently in that brief time, Luffy had already run out the door leaving the four of them.

"Should we go find him?" Addy asked the group.

"Nah he'll be fine," Zoro said. Addy looked at him like he had grown two extra heads. "He does this a lot. He will catch up later." With that Zoro left as well, leaving Addy to wonder what exactly she had gotten herself into.

"Idiots," Nami said. Nami turned towards her. "So where is the nearest river?"

"Follow me," Addy said walking out the door, but not before waving good bye to Paisley. Paisley walked up to hear and embraced her in a hug. Startled, Addy hugged back.

"You be careful now," Paisley said. "Don't do anything too mind boggling stupid"

"No promises," Addy replied.

Paisley let out a laugh, and turned towards all three of them "Keep each other safe, I would like to see all of you come back with your limbs attached."

After an exchange of promises, including a couple to Hadley that they will be back, the three of them walked down the main street, passing by the rest of the village including the market place, where Nami stopped to pick up more supplies. Addy wondered just how much meat they actually needed.

"Are you sure all this is necessary?" Addy asked. "How much do you expect to eat?"

"With Luffy around, you can never be too careful," she responded, which made Addy more nervous than she should be. Leaving the outskirts of town behind them, they walked closer to the forest. A river snaked itself out of the trees and made its way to the coast. They decided to stop and wait by the river for the Zoro and Luffy to catch up. Addy hoped they would not take that long. Kicking off her shoes, she sat down on the grass and let her feet dangle in the water. Nami sat next to her. Usopp was looking around as if something were about to jump out and eat them which Addy started to figure was a pretty common look on him.

"So Addy, umm there is not like any danger in the forest, right?" Usopp stuttered.

"Not as far as I know. Haven't been here all that long to find out. Most dangerous thing we will run into will be the bandits," Addy answered.

"Ah of course, well bandits are nothing compared to me. When I was seven there was this massive bandit camps, housing thousands. All I had was my trusty slingshot but that did not stop me from storming in and…"

"So how long do you think we have to wait?" Addy asked Nami. Usopp was still rambling in the background but she was tuning most of it out. Apparently Nami was doing the same.

"You are assuming that they are ever going to find us," she answered dryly.

"Honestly that wasn't the answer I was hoping for." Addy laid herself down on the grass and watched the clouds roll by. Each moment they were not looking for the bandits was a moment wasted.

Eventually after what seemed like forever, Zoro and Luffy appeared with Luffy carrying meat in each of his hands.

"Took you long enough," Addy snapped frustrated.

"Well it's your fault for giving bad directions," Zoro argued back.

"Directions? All I told you to do was follow me. How could that be… You know what never mind let's just get going."

"Let's go," Luffy yelled. But Nami managed to grab his shoulder before he ran off again.

"Right, let's just keep quiet and follow me so the bandits don't ambush us."

"Ambush, you never said anything about ambush," Usopp yelled. "I think my Don't-Go-In-That-Forest disease is acting up."

Addy brought her hands to her face and sighed. What was she doing? She barely knew these people. How strong could they be really? Well Zoro was, but Luffy? He looked like he never been in a fight in his life. Not to mention Nami and Usopp. Nami did not seem like a fighter and Ussop looked like he was going outside for the first time. She wasn't even sure what their skills were.

Suddenly she felt a hand on her shoulder and removed her hands. Luffy was looking at her with the stupidest grin on his face, but she couldn't help but smile back. It was contagious. Perhaps that was his power. He just made everyone his friend.

"Lead the way Addy," he said full of confidence. And so she did, they crossed the threshold into the forest, following the river. It was the largest river on the island. While the currents surrounding the island would normally not allow for a ship to sail up, every once in a while, they aligned perfectly. At least that is what Paisley told her. Addy suspected that's how the bandits got here in the first place.

Most of the walk was silent, with the occasional chatter from the Straw Hats. About the Grand Line, bandits, and just general other oddball stuff. Addy occasionally interjected in the conversation, and laughed along with them. Nami seemed frustrated with their antics but could not help laughing now and again, while Zoro occasionally cracked a smile and laughed at the opportune moments. For once in a long time Addy at peace. If only she had her locket then things would be fine, more than fine. It would be great.

Eventually night fell and it became too dark to see where they were going. Addy was reluctant to stop, but she knew that they had too. It was one thing fighting bandits during the day, but at night on their home turf, Addy wasn't willing to take that chance. Luffy and Zoro were more than happy to continue walking until they found them but the three of them managed to talk them down.

"Ah Addy don't you want to find your treasure?" Luffy asked in a pleading tone. He had been trying to convince her for the past half hour. She was sitting by the river, feet dangling in, while Nami and Usopp were setting up the fire to cook the fish she was going to catch soon. There is no point in wasting supplies being so close to a food source.

"Of course I do Luffy, but I also don't want to die stupidly trying to get it. We need to be smart about this. Otherwise I might never get it back."

"Those bandits did not seem that tough, you managed to handle yourself against them," Zoro answered. Addy wasn't sure if that was a compliment or an insult. Judging by the way Zoro was looking at her with some respect in his eyes, it seemed like a compliment.

"Don't kid yourself. The ones that we have been fighting have basically been the underlings. The real threat stays at their hideout."

"Meaning?" Zoro asked, looking at her intensely.

"Well there leader is a man known as the Bandit King. I don't actually know his real name but apparently his bounty is 16,500,000."

"That's more than Kuro!" Usopp said. Addy had no idea who Kuro was but from the way he was shaking, he wasn't the nicest of people.

"However he is not the only threat. His lieutenants are also very powerful," Addy said.

"So all I have to do is kick the bandit kings ass?" Luffy asked. That wasn't the reaction Addy was expecting.

"Well… I guess so. I mean I assume as there leader he would go through all the treasure."

"Let's go then." Luffy made a move to dash off… again, but Nami grabbed ahold of him."

"Remember dumbass. We are waiting here until morning so that we don't walk into a trap," Nami said.

"But it's so boring here!"

As the group started to bicker Addy noticed that Usopp and Nami basically had the fire set up. All that was needed was the food. Standing up, Addy stretched out her arms and then took a short running leap into the river. She heard shouting, something about injuries in the like but that did not matter. Right now she was free.

Swimming in the water almost like a seal, she was twisting and turning. Enjoying the sensation of the water flowing across her body it was slick against her skin. Her injuries were no longer bothering her. Movement was completely unhindered. Gliding across the bottom of the river it was almost like she was dancing. Surrounded by fish of various shapes and sizes she just started grabbing those that looked the most delicious along with the occasionally crab or two. Hoping that someone up there was catching all these she continued throwing them up aiming so that they would land on the shore. She even managed to wrangle one that was her size. It was no problem for her. Here she was the apex predator, the queen of the water. Even Sea Kings had to be careful.

She wanted to stay down here for a while and relax. It had been a long time since she had a swim. But she knew that the others were waiting. Surfacing, she swam to the shallower part and walked up back to the shore. The water rolled off of her and she was basically dry in an instant. Her clothing was also dry as soon as it hit the air. Sea King leather did wonders when it was properly treated. She saw that they were already cooking the fish, though if they kept looking at her than it was going to be more ash than fish.

Usopp and Nami were looking at her terrified. Zoro more curious than anything though he did have a grip on his sword. Not a good sign. Luffy on the other hand looked at her in absolute amazement like stars were sparking in his eyes, as if she came down from the heavens riding a rainbow. They continued looking at her, even as she rifled in her bag for her stash of alcohol, courtesy of Paisley. After taking a long drink, she turned towards Nami and Usopp.

"You know if you keep that on the fire much longer it's going to turn into dust."

Nami yelped and took the fish out from the fire. Usopp continued to stare at her wide eyed. Addy rolled her eyes.

"Okay is there a problem here? Do I have a giant bug crawling on me? Did the world end and I haven't noticed?

"You were in the river for half an hour." Zoro stated bluntly. Addy looked around and everyone basically confirmed what he said. Shit, she was in trouble now. Her intention was only to stay in a few minutes. She was hoping that they would never find out. Always caused problems when someone did. Right now she had to think of some excuse quickly.

"Well, you see I…"

"Hah look at what we found here boys." Addy praised her luck. Well luck in the minimalist sense. They were surrounded by Dagmar and his goons, a lot of his goons but at least she didn't have to explain why she can breathe underwater. Apparently Dagmar was still talking though not for much longer as Luffy got up and punched the guy.

Now this normally would not be strange, but Addy stood there dumbfounded for a moment before joining the fight. Zoro got into as well and the three of them were fighting the bandits off. Nami and Usopp were hiding behind a rock, with Usopp occasionally taking potshots at the bandits from what looked like a slingshot. All of this could be considered normal, except for one tiny detail. Luffy apparently can stretch. Whatever devil fruit he had eaten, it was certainly a weird one.


	4. Tides Come In Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _I am not overly fond of this chapter. Particularly how it ends. If there are any overly OCC moments than let me know. As always please review. It lets me know what I can improve on._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I unfortunately do not own One Piece._

* * *

Boy, when Addy thought that Luffy couldn't fight she was dead wrong. The guy fought like a mad man. Taking out guys faster than she was. Zoro was also doing well, he wasn't even using all three of his swords and yet guys were still falling over. Addy thought that they would get in her way, a whip isn't the best weapon for cooperative fighting, but actually they managed to sync it rather well. They essentially split the bandits into three groups and Luffy, Zoro and her each managing one, with Usopp providing support. It was incredibly useful to have a sniper. Her injuries had only slightly slowed her down. There were a few more close calls than she would have liked. She managed to take down the last of her guys around the same time that Luffy and Zoro did as well. They were lucky they were only minions. If the real threat came, well Addy was not sure that would have made it out as well as they did.

Panting slightly she looked around at the unconscious bodies. Usopp jumped up from hiding behind the rock.

"Yosh great work guys. All thanks to my fantastic leadership. Why those bandits are nothing. Compared to…" Usopp rambled. Zoro sheathed his swords and sat back down. Luffy had already started eating while Addy was still coming to terms with the situation.

"Nami?" Addy said. She turned to look towards her. "Did they leave behind any foot prints?"

"What? Yeah towards the West."

"Great." Addy dashed off in that direction, following the foot prints that were clearly marked out. The others followed swiftly as well.

"Hey, what happened to waiting for morning?" Nami asked.

"No point now," Addy replied. "We know what direction they came from and anyone close by would have heard our little tiff. They would all be bearing down on us at the river. Now we have a better chance of actually finding them." Assuming, of course they came directly from there hideout, and they didn't take a roundabout route, but Addy could hope.

Addy raced through the forest, following the footprints through the rugged terrain. However she found herself unconsciously slowing down in order for Luffy to run with her, side by side. Heck he was even slightly ahead of her. She knew she could go faster than this, but for some reason, she felt it was important to keep the pace. Unfortunately that meant Luffy was the one leading them and it was only when they were completely and hopelessly lost did Addy figure out that was a bad thing.

"Idiot, all you had to do was follow the footprints and now look where we are?!" Nami yelled.

"What? I was only going where Addy was running off to."

They had managed to find themselves in a glade of sorts, after running for a while. It was now late at night; Addy could tell by how high the moon was in the sky. The animals were making various noises, though they seemed to go silent with Nami yelling. Addy wondered how the bandits have not found them, with all the noise they were making.

"You complete moron!" Nami wacked him on the head, creating a rather large bump. "The foot prints, she was following those, not running off in some random direction. And now look at where we are. Completely, hopelessly, fricken lost."

"Does this happen a lot?" Addy asked Usopp who she was standing beside. Zoro had fallen asleep next to a rock and Addy had a feeling that not even an army could wake him up.

"All the time," Usopp said completely deadpanned.

Addy signed and sat herself down next to a tree. There was no chance of finding the bandits now that they got themselves completely turned around. Hell it would take a miracle to find the village again. She ran her fingers through her hair. In hindsight, it was rather dumb to go follow foot prints in the dark but it was either that or stay by the river and get ambushed again. At least now the bandits had no idea where they were. She thought about bringing that up, but didn't want to gain Nami wrath. She was still concentrated on yelling at Luffy.

Honestly, the best thing for them to do would probably be wait until morning and follow their own foot prints back. Apparently she said this because Nami looked at her as if she was the sun, and set Luffy to do guard duty, for getting them lost. Addy almost wished she was on guard. It would give her time to clear her head. Instead she settled herself down near the base of the tree and closed her eyes, willing sleep to overtake her.

…

It was the light of the sun that woke her up, which was a surprise. She half expected Luffy to be making a racket, but there he was sprawled out on the grass, snoring away. Nami and Usopp were also still asleep, not that far away from Luffy. Addy got up, took a drink from her flask and stretched, working out the kinks in her back. Looking around she could she where there they came in from, there chaotic foot prints leading out of the glade. Addy was half tempted to follow them and even took a few steps to do so when she felt a hand grab her shoulder. She turned to find herself staring at a pair of grass green eyes on a rather stern face. She gave a quick smile though on the inside she was a ball of nerves.

"Zoro," she said, keeping her voice low to avoid waking the others up. "Is there something you need?" He let go of her arm but kept his eyes on her. She wandered back closer to the middle of the grove and leaned back against a tree. Zoro relaxed somewhat but he was still on edge.

"What are you?" he asked.

'Crap,' Addy thought. There was no avoiding this is there. She really, really wanted to avoid this, but from the look on him she had no choice.

"Well… you see, this may be hard to take in but…"

"Hey, what are you two talking about?" Ussop asked. Apparently the rest were awake now as well. Great, now she had a full audience. Addy was looking for any way out of this.

"Look this isn't what you think," Addy said. Well to be fair she had no idea what they thought and from the skeptical look Zoro was giving her, he wasn't buying what she was saying. All that man had to do was glare at her and she was already a nervous wreck.

"I'm hungry," Luffy said breaking the tension. They all turned to look at him. He was sitting on the floor with his hand on his stomach. "Let's eat."

It did not take long to have a fire set up and they were eating some of the food they packed which many consisted of dried meats including fish, bread, and fruit they got from the surrounding woods.

"Let's go. I need to kick the bandit's king ass," Luffy said. He started walking in a random direction but it was Addy who stopped him this time by lightly wrapping her whip around his arm.

"Instead of going off half-cocked, how about we let the actual navigator lead," Addy said. Not that it would take a navigator to follow the foot prints but with Luffy with them it would be better to be safe than sorry. Judging by the relieved looks Usopp and Nami were giving her it appeared they agreed with her sentiment. She unwrapped her whip from Luffy when he nodded in agreement, and that is how they ended up following Nami tracing their steps. Apparently they had traveled a lot further than she thought. She would congratulate Usopp and Nami for keeping up later. After an hour though she was starting to get worried. Addy was in the back, making sure that the others, Luffy, would not wandered off, but now she jogged to the front where Nami was holding a compass in one hand.

"Nami," she whispered sofly, not wanting the others to overhear. "Are we lost?" Nami turned towards her with a strained smile.

"No we are just temporarily misplaced," she answered. So they were hopelessly lost then. Addy looked around bewildered. It was only a regular forest. It wasn't thick or anything, the light of the sun could be seen shining through the leaves. The undergrowth was easy to go through and birds were chirping and if Addy listened closely she could hear the sounds of other wildlife as well, even with all the noise they were making. Everything smelled earthy and slightly sweet as the flowers were in bloom. So why were they so hopelessly lost. Addy looked at the ground and she could see foot prints but even though it was dark last night Addy was pretty sure that they never went this way. After all, she thinks she would have recognized the glowing blue flowers, even if they were running.

She walked back towards the rest of the group, Usopp and Luffy were chatting about something or another though it apparently had to deal with trees coming alive and a cannon, while Zoro was looking around warily. Addy walked towards him and he grunted but moved slightly so there was room for them to walk side by side.

"Look I know you don't trust me," she said. He gave her the 'no shit' look. She ignored it. "But I need to know, have you noticed anyone, or anything following us?"

"Why ask me?" he said.

"You're a swordsman, you have the best senses out of all of us. If anyone is going to sense if anything is off, it's going to be you." He looked at her slightly surprised and a slight blush across his cheeks though Addy chocked that up to the warm weather. He shook his head and turned to face forward again. Damn

She was hoping that someone with a Devil Fruit was following them and messing with their minds. Not that would make this situation any better, only less embarrassing when telling it again. Because otherwise they got lost on their own accord. This is bad. If they are lost in the woods, there was not a chance they would find her locket. What the hell is going on?

Once again she said that out loud because her companions had stopped and are now staring at her.

"Addy?" Luffy asked. "Are you okay?" He looked concerned, which was odd considering his jovial expression. Addy at that moment wanted nothing more than to put the smile back on his face, but she squashed that feeling down without remorse or sympathy.

"Sorry, it's just odd isn't it? We have been following these foot prints for hours now but for the life of me I cannot remember passing through this area last night."

"Now that you say that I can't either," Usopp said. The others nodded in agreement.

"Right, but there are definitely foot prints and from what I heard in the village this forest isn't cursed or magical or anything. The only other option is that all of us are complete morons or these-"

"These are not our footprints," Nami answered for her.

Usopp jumped up in alarm, hiding behind Luffy and his whole body shaking, "W-w-whose are they then?"

"Bandits, if we are lucky," Addy replied. "If we are unlucky than it's the miners who work in the mountains. Both are possibilities since we have been actually heading up since we left the grove." Which should have been the first sign to be fair; the river was down the mountains not up. Or at least Addy thought it was.

"Why are bandits lucky? Are you nuts? You're not having a mental breakdown, are you?"

"Bandits are lucky because that is one step closer to me getting my locket back, and you getting off this island and on your way to the Grand Line. If it is the miners than it means more running around."

"What are we going to do?"

That was actually a good question. They could head back to the glade, try to find their own foot prints and head back towards the river, which would be the much safer path, or they could take the dangerous unknown route into the mountains and hope that they make it to the end of the trail. She was about to suggest the safer route, as much as she wanted her locket back she also wanted to stay alive. However the choice was taken out of her hands.

"Let's go up," Luff shouted.

"But," Nami stated to say but Luffy shook his head.

"I want to kick his ass and the faster way to do that is up. Besides he has Addy treasure." Addy looked at him amazed, at the determination in his voice and the hard look in his eyes.

Why are you doing this? She wondered not for the first time. Despite the dangers they were actually going to take the more treacherous route, all for her.

Apparently, that was all that was needed and they were off again, this time surer in their course. Addy walked behind him, Nami and Usopp behind her and Zoro by Luffy side. And everything felt like it was in its proper place.

…

This was absolutely insane. The group was walking up the mountain, still following the foot prints. The trees had traded leaves for needles and Addy could feel it getting colder the higher they walked up. Where the bloody hell were they going? Despite her hesitations however she kept on walking. Even after the three rock slides, the random bear attack and the cliff crumbling away, they continued walking. Everything was heavy despite the familiar weight missing. Once she got it back things would be better, not okay but better. Until then she would follow the idiot with the straw hat. Despite the fact that he was marching them up a mountain. What was she thinking? Maybe she was having a mental breakdown.

After a day of walking up the mountain, she was broken out of her thoughts when Luffy stopped. Walking out in front with Usopp and Nami, she saw what Zoro and Luffy were looking at. A cave, one the foot prints head directly into. Addy saw torches heading into the cave but who knows how far they went. They barely lit anything up either so the cave basically dissolved into darkness. She gulped. Addy had always be claustrophobic, though it didn't normally affect her. Apparently Usopp was as well because he caught, Can't-Go-Into-The-Cave disease. Even Nami was nervous, if the way she was clutching Addy's hand in an iron clad grip was any indication. None of this however stopped Luffy who walked straight in with a smile on his face. Zoro followed shortly after.

"Should we follow them?" Addy asked.

"Yeah," Usopp and Nami answered in unison.

Addy sighed and took a swig from her flask, calming down her twinges. She was running low, hopefully she would be able to steal some from the bandits. She could not go a day without it. Clipping it back into place, together the three of them walked in, following the jovial captain and the stalwart swordsman.


	5. Tides Come In Part 5

_This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

It did not take too long to catch up to Luffy and Zoro, even with Usopp being a nervous wreck. Addy grabbed a torch from the wall and was using that to light their path. It was dark and chilly, the temperature dropping not long after they had entered. There was a certain dampness to it that Addy appreciated though she doubted the others did.

She had no idea where they were going. The cave was natural and not dug out like some of the mining tunnels. However that did not mean they were going the right way. The tunnels were a maze in the mountains. One could get lost for days. The children of the village were always warned not to go in them. And here Addy was ignoring all those warnings.

She was tired, weariness entering her bones and she could feel her injuries acting up. Well, truthfully they had been acting up for the past several days, but her sheer desperation to find her locket kept her going. Apparently that was not enough however and she felt herself crashing on the floor. The voices of her comrades were swimming in her head and all Addy wanted to do was sleep forever. Right now she was getting her wish.

…

Addy opened her eyes and all she saw was a bright red light. Blinking she saw that the light was fire from the torches. She felt something heavy lying on top of her stomach preventing her from getting up, as well as something by her side and her shoulder. Her legs were also being held in place. Riley? She thought at first but after her eyes had adjusted to the light she saw that the Straw Hats had all made themselves comfortable, as best they could, around her. Nami was using her shoulder as a pillow, Usopp curled up on her side. Zoro by her legs and Luffy was basically on top of her. She felt her heart constrict and almost let out a sob. For a second there she thought that Riley…

Out of a habit long thought dead she ran her fingers through Luffy hair. This made him snuggle in deeper and a small smile cross her face. One of joy but also mourning. Curling herself more around Nami without disturbing any of the others, she closed her eyes to sleep.

…

Surprisingly Addy was the last one to get up and it was Nami shaking her awake that did it. She groaned but managed to sit up feeling the fresh bandages on her as she moved. Addy must have been really out of it if that did not wake her up. Saying thanks to Nami, she got her flask out of her bag, downed some more and ate some of the dried fish. There was no word about what happened, and Addy wasn't going to bring it up.

They continued walking through the cave, their only light being the torches they carried. Sometimes they wandered through open caverns with nothing but darkness below them. At other times the tunnels were so close that they were basically crawling on their hands and knees. But no matter the circumstances the group was never silent. They were always talking about something. While this probably alerted everyone remotely in the area, Addy found that she did not care.

Even when they were attacked by more bandits. This group was harder than the last but nothing that they could not handle. Addy when she had the chance took quick looks at Zoro and Luffy. Luffy was absolutely brutal, no mercy in his attacks. It was all chaos. Zoro was also brutal but there was a sort of elegance to it. Each sword strike was perfect, each move chosen to exactly. There was no wasted movement.

Addy ducked under a sword strike, slide so that she was on her knees and wrapped her whip around her attacker's legs sending him to the ground in whimpers. Unraveling it in the blink of the eye, she lashed it at another person coming towards her and the whip continued its path, lashing against everyone surrounding her until they were all on the ground. Letting her whip crack in the air she sent shivers down their spines.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw someone going after Luffy, sword raised. Not taking a chance she lashed out her whip wrapping it around her opponent's chest. Using the forward momentum, she launched herself towards the guy landing behind him and using his weight to pull him on the floor. However in the second before she unraveled her whip, she saw a sword directly above her head. Preparing to roll herself out of the way, a fist from seemingly out of nowhere landed a direct hit and sent the bandit crashing into the nearest cave wall. There was an ominous rumble but Addy barely heard it over the sounds of battle. She glanced back at Luffy who was beating the crap of more bandits without any notice of the interruption, almost as if it was natural. It wasn't much longer after that the bandits started retreating in various directions. Apparently there were more tunnels than they thought. Addy hoped that they were going in the right direction. She did not want to spend the rest of her life in these caves.

It was only when Addy turned did she see the reason they were retreating. A big guy was holding Nami and Usopp in each hand. He was tall enough that his head scraped the ceiling. Addy could stand at full height and he was a couple of feet above her. His was also as wide as two Zoro's standing next to each other. He was wearing what could only be described as a bright pink jumpsuit with way too many belts attached.

Instincts honed from when she was with Riley she let muscle memory do the work. Running towards pink jumpsuit man she wrapped her whip around him fully, quick as a flash, constricting it tightly. He gasped and dropped the two out of pain, giving Addy the opportunity.

"Lautan ombak remuk," she called out smashing directly into him sending him toppling backwards. This caused the whip to constrict even further and rip apart the clothing and skin underneath. Before he could land on the ground, Addy twisted to the side and using her momentum released her whip, sending him spiraling into the wall. Catching her breath she re holstered her whip. Luffy and Zoro were coming towards them, when a loud rumbling occurred. Apparently that bandit was the last straw and the cave started to collapse. There was no chance to get to Zoro and Luffy before the cave collapsed so Addy, Nami and Usopp did the most sensible thing and started running in the opposite direction, down the tunnel with the cave collapsing.

Eventually they reached a large stable open cavern. Nami and Usopp collapsed on the ground, trying to catch their breath. Addy looked at the tunnel they came from. It was completely blocked off. There was no chance of going back that way.

"We are going to die!" Usopp yelled. "We are going to be trapped in this cave forever until we starve to death or the bandits get us or-"

"Calm down," Addy said. "I don't intend to die in a cave anytime soon." At least not until she got her locket back. Taking a swig from her flask, she observed the room. Unlike the other caverns, this place had multiple tunnels leading out, going in various directions. Instead of torches there were lanterns, making this whole place a lot brighter than the previous tunnels. This was going to be harder than she thought.

"I think we found ourselves in the main hall," Addy said. She helped both Nami and Usopp from the ground. "Which means that the bandits are going to be attracted here from the collapse."

"Wait there is more of them?"

"Probably, I don't think we have run into the strongest ones yet. Only question is where do we go now?" She turned towards Nami, trusting her judgement more than her own. Instincts of a helmsman, the Captain say where he wants to go, the navigator guides, while the helmsman gets you there. It's a perfect balance.

Therefore when Nami started leading them down a tunnel, Addy trusted her. It was actually Usopp who needed the encouragement. Addy mind wandered over to Luffy and Zoro. They were probably dead, which was a shame, they were nice guys, but nobody even a person with a Devil Fruit could survive the collapse. She would make sure that Usopp and Nami would get to where they want to go. Addy owed them that much. Assuming of course that they survive.

Wherever they were headed though was heavily guarded. Addy had counted that they had run into a least 27 traps, all of which Nami disarmed before they set them off.

"Amateurs," Nami scoffed though Addy was impressed by her skill. How long exactly had she been a thief? Had to have been since childhood.

As they continued marching down the tunnel it was rather quiet, apart from Usopp warning that they were all going to die at any second. Nami shut him up though with a bonk to the head, though tears were still streaming down his face. Despite his fears however he kept moving forward, something Addy had to give him credit for.

The missing weight was starting to ache at her. She kept reaching up only to find nothing there. The twitching was coming back so she took another swig, but found there was nothing left. She sighed. That was going to be another delay. Finding alcohol was going to be a pain, not a nightmare though considering that they were in a bandit hideout. The question then was how to convince Nami to allow for the detour. It was only then did she notice something else was missing.

"Nami," Addy called out.

"Yes?"

"Our supplies, we put them down during the bandit fight right?"

Nami seemed thoughtful for a second. "No I think Luffy and Zoro held onto them. Those monsters could fight even with all that strapped to their backs." Addy dimly recalled that actually being the case. At some point the two of them did take over carrying supplies.

"So then all are supplies are with them then? On the other side of the collapsed tunnel?" Nami stopped walking and Addy almost ran into the back of her. Nami turned to look at her with a look of what the Hell we do now. Usopp started up again with all the doom saying.

Once again Addy sighed. This was going to be harder to manage than she thought. She grabbed ahold of Usopp, who was running around in circles, and started talking to the two of them. "Alright here is what we are going to do. Does anyone have anything we can mark the walls with?" Nami shook her head, but Usopp rummaged around his back until he pulled out a large piece of chalk. Wondering what the hell he would ever need that for Addy decided it was best not to question it and instead walked towards the tunnel wall a drew a large arrow in the direction they were going. She did so on the other side of the tunnel as well. When she finished she turned to the other two. "Now we know that we have been down this tunnel, I will also mark it when we reach the end. That way we know which of these tunnels we have been down and how to escape from this place. Eventually we should be able to find where they store there supplies in this maze. The two of them nodded and looked much more reassured.

They set off again, this time with Addy leading. It felt like they had been down here for hours, though Addy suspected only one or two have perhaps passed, making Addy wonder how large this place really was. Despite all the walking, they had yet to run into any other bandits. Addy almost wished they would run into one, just so she could beat directions out of him. The cave was starting to bear down on her. She ran her hand across the handle of her whip in comfort.

"Usopp," she called out, surprising the sniper. Normally she preferred silence, but this was becoming overbearing. "How did you end up joining the Straw Hats?" To admit she was rather curious, about how someone who acted like he had barely been off his home island his entire life managed to hook up with Luffy. Apparently it was a rather elaborate tale and probably highly exaggerated. Addy highly doubted Usopp took out 100 pirates with a single sniper bullet but she got the gist of the story. Sick girl with an inheritance, evil butler who was actually a pirate captain who apparently used cat claws, a hypnotist who only hypnotized himself. Addy thought he was genuinely making it up as he went along, though Nami actually seemed to confirm many of the details and correct the more egregious lies.

"So you're telling me that a bunch of cat themed pirates came to your island. You fought them off, despite the fact that you got what shore they landed on incorrect, without letting anybody else on the island know except the girl…"

"Kaya."

"Fine Kaya, her servant, and three kids. And for return for all this trouble, they gave you a ship."

"Yep the Going Merry."

"Going Merry," the name rolled of her tongue. It was a good name. She was looking forward to meeting this ship.

During the epic long tale as Usopp described it they reached the end of a tunnel, with two divergent paths. After a careful deliberate decision process, i.e. flipping a coin they went down the right tunnel.

"So how did you end up allying yourself with the Straw Hats?" she asked Nami. "Let me guess, it has something to do with a crazed clown, a giant cannon, and pet food."

"Actually yes."

"Wait what?!"

"Have you ever heard of Buggy?" Addy dimly recalled the name from somewhere. Wasn't he one of the apprentices on Roger's ship? If that's the case he certainly did not make it very far, considering he is sailing around East Blue.

"Sounds familiar," Addy answered. And apparently, that was the cue for Nami to tell the story, though it was a lot less elaborate than Usopp's. Usopp kept quiet as well. It seemed like this was his first time hearing the tale.

As they continued walking they did not notice that the tunnel was getting lighter, that the path was worn down by footsteps. They only noticed that the area was different when they wandered into the next chamber and saw the Bandit King sitting on a chair behind a desk with two other guys talking right across from him on a couch. Apparently this part of the cave system was well furnished though Addy did not really notice that they had somehow managed to wander into the office of the Bandit King. He was pretty recognizable considering he had his bounty poster on the wall next to him.

He was a muscular guy, taller than even Zoro. His brown hair was slicked back and he had a frown on his face, though his eyes gave away the shock. He looked more like a business man than a bandit king. On the couch, turned towards to face them were two other guys. One was a thin guy with bleach blond hair and dark skin. On his hip he carried this jagged curved sword. The other guy was much stockier though shorter, and had coal black hair and white as snow skin. On his hands were two spikey gloves and he threw a wicked grin towards the three of them.

Addy looked between the three of them and turned to look at Usopp and Nami who were cowering behind her. Yep they were royally screwed.


	6. Tides Come In Part 6

_Authors Note:_

 _So we are over halfway through now. Things are hopefully starting to heat up. As always please review and let me know what I can improve. We have only started scratching the surface when it comes to Addy._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Who the hell are you three?!" the Bandit King asked, looking surprised. "How the hell did you find this place?!" Addy was caught between lying through her teeth and saying the truth. Though Usopp took that decision out of her hands. Well him and Nami. Between the two of them, Addy doubted there wasn't a situation they couldn't get out of. The Bandit King seemed to be buying whatever nonsense they were saying because he stopped looking like he wanted to kill them immediately.

That all changed however when Addy saw what was on his desk. A silver seashell. Addy locked eyes with the Bandit King and his eyes widened. It didn't matter what his bounty was, the fact that they were on his home turf or that ever single odd was stacked against her. Addy was going to get that back even if it killed her.

In what seemed like the blink of an eye, Addy raced across the room, used the big guy head as a springboard and flipped over the table to grab the locket. However the Bandit King noticed what she was doing and in the last second grabbed it. Landing on the other side of the desk, she pivoted so she was facing Usopp and Nami and a very angry big guy holding up one of his spiked gloves and trying to punch her teeth in. She ducked beneath his arm and swerved around him so that she was facing his back.

This fight was going to be tricky Addy thought. The guy was covered in some sort of metal armor. Only his neck, forearms, and calves were uncovered. Addy wondered what the point of armor that left blind spots was but she did not spend too much time thinking about it as she was dodging his furious punches.

"Stay still brat and let me hit you!" the guy grumbled. His voice sounded like gravel.

"No thanks, I would rather like to keep on living," Addy replied. Addy could not afford to get hit. One punch and her organs would be goop. Not because he was exactly strong, Addy has fought stronger but because she was basically made out of glass.

She dodged and pivoted around and cracked her whip, lashing it across the back of his neck. She could hear him hiss in pain, though all he did was lunge at her again.

"Addy take him down!" Usopp called out. She turned quickly to look at them, wondering why the hell they haven't escaped yet. Apparently the other guy with a sword was blocking the door which was pretty much the last thing they needed.

No scratch that, the twinges she was starting to get were the last thing she needed. She barely dodged the last punch. She needed something to calm her nerves and she needed it now.

"So you are not that fast after all girl," her opponent grumbled.

"Please, I could dodge you all day." Addy was lying through her teeth but she wasn't going to let him know that. Circling around him, she lashed out against his legs hoping that would slow him down.

"That's it you wretch. Hammer Fist!" he called out. Addy barely managed to get out of the way. He brought his two fists together and smashed them into the ground. While she managed to dodge the impact, the shockwave knocked the breath out of her and sent her stumbling into the desk.

"Oi, keep her away from the desk," the Bandit King said sounding annoyed. "I got valuable stuff here." She was about to launch herself from the desk when her hand brushed a bottle of some sort. Grabbing it quickly she jumped into the farthest corner away from her opponent.

Looking at the bottle she could tell it was some kind of scotch, probably a good kind to if the Bandit King was drinking it. Not that it really mattered all she needed was something to calm her down. She would have drunk a medicine bottle at that point. Downing the thing entirely, she threw the bottle into the corner somewhat satisfied with the sound of smashing glass and the angry snarl of the Bandit King.

"So you're a bit of a drinker then," big angry man said.

"What can I say, I like the taste of good alcohol."

"Careful girly don't get too drunk now."

"Please it takes more than one bottle to even get me tipsy." Sad enough that was true and something that Addy somewhat regretted. Though now was not the time to think about that, she had a guy to take out. Perhaps she could use this to her advantage. "Actually what does that say about you that I can drink you under the table. Perhaps you would like some milk instead, since you obvious can't handle what I dish out."

That made him angry. With a howl of rage he charged towards her. While most people would assume that this is a bad idea, Addy smiled. Angry people also usually end up being stupid people, with very few exceptions. And this was no exception. Addy dodge him at the last possible moment by leaping in the air, so that he ran straight into the wall she had her back towards, knocking down some rather expensive looking paintings.

"Oh come on," the Bandit King said. "Those were valuable." Really those were valuable? Addy was pretty sure that Luffy could do better. Addy twisted herself in the air so that she landed on angry man's back. Grabbing the hilt of her whip on either side she pressed it against his throat letting the rest of the whip tangle around his leg. Unfortunately, the guy was slightly taller than she was so her feet were just scraping the ground.

This had the effect of driving the man absolutely bonkers and he raced all over the room trying to get her off without success. Addy spent most of the time trying to drive him into various walls with a bonus of destroying most of the furniture in the place. The Bandit King looked more and more unhappy with each passing moment.

"You absolute moron, back her into a wall!"

It was when he tried to do so that Addy jumped off but not before kicking him in the head. He let out an enrage roar. Apparently he was too angry for words now. Once she hit the ground Addy backed up as far as she could from the man. She did not like the look in his eye.

"Hammer top!" he screamed, sticking his arms out and spinning madly. It was like he was creating a tornado in the middle of the room he was spinning so quickly. Addy watched as he ran directly into a wall and bounced off heading straight towards the Bandit King. Sighing he got up and slammed his fist into the center of the massive spinning ball of fury and sent it straight towards her.

"Now you done it," the Bandit King drawled. "He is going to destroy the room now and I had it perfectly set up. He wasn't kidding. Addy could feel the wind blast from where she was standing. It was cutting into her, she could feel some of her wounds reopening. It wouldn't be long until he reached her, less time until she was incapable of moving.

Looking around for an opening, she scanned the room. She did not have long until the death top came crashing into her. It was only at the last second did she spot what she was looking for. Jumping up right before he smashed into her, she grabbed the chandelier that was hanging from the ceiling and climbed on top as the guy she was fighting smashed into a wall only to be sent flying off into another. Addy hoped that the chandelier would hold her weight. As she stared at the guy now bouncing around the room and destroying everything. This was turning into an absolute nightmare. The guy just keeps moving.

Addy wondered if he was going to get tired eventual. He must have to. Apparently not before spiraling out of control. Suddenly there was a shift in his direction and he was going to plow directly into Usopp and Nami. Thinking quickly Addy knew she really had only one option. Timing it correctly was going to be the hard part. Waiting until he was just about to pass right below her, she gripped the chandelier and gave it a hard tug. With the added pressure of her weight and her jumping off she sent it crashing into the ground. Right onto him. The shards of glass went everywhere and some of them embedded in her skin. Ignoring the pain she knew that she had one move to take this guy down.

"Lautan Tangan!" she called out lashing her whip at him. The whip tip started splitting off and wrapping themselves around the various open parts of his body cutting directly into his skin. Addy continued twisting her whip so it dug further and further into his skin until it was tight enough that it was cutting into bone. "Kembali!" Addy said clearly and the whip untwisted itself from him leaving blood spluttering from his wounds. The various tails merged back into one and her opponent collapsed on the floor from blood loss.

Addy now turned towards the swordsman, though she could tell she was bleeding from where the glass had hit her and where she reopened her wounds. Addy would not last long and she knew it. Perhaps she could give Usopp and Nami enough of a chance to get away though.

Turns out she could not even do that much. Before she knew it she was on her knees and sword at her throat right smack in front of the doorway. The sword guy was an amazing fighter. At full strengthen Addy might have been able to take him down, though she doubted it. She remembered moving there to dodge his attacks, though she knew that it was him pushing her in that direction. Her side was stinging from where he managed to get an attack in. Usopp and Nami were now in the middle of the room by the desk. Addy could see the fear but also some other emotions in there as well. Stubbornness and pride. Addy knew if she died here then they would fight tooth and nail against these guys. Not for the first time Addy wished she had the strength to defend those she cared for. She failed again.

Addy could feel the tears in her eyes starting to form but she would not let them shed. Instead she looked defiantly at the Bandit King who was now staring directly into her eyes. Once the swordsman had her pinned he got up from his desk and walked over. If they were going to kill her she would go down fighting as best she could. The longer she held off, the better chance Usopp and Nami had to think of a way to escape.

"You know, I could use someone of your skills," the Bandit King stated calmly. Addy continued to glare at him. "You did manage to take out Clive, which is impressive despite him being a moron. Tell you what how about we make a deal. I consider myself a business man of sorts." Addy almost laughed out loud, but held back to a snicker. Apparently he did not notice or if he did he paid it no attention. "I will give you what you are looking for." He held out her locket. Before she could grab it he snatched it away from her sight. "This is really precious to you, isn't it? The material is virtually worthless," Addy started to shake in angry. "Nothing more than a common seashell. However looking inside," He opened up the locket and Addy would have lunged at him if not for the sword at her throat. "Mm interesting, someone very precious. A lover perhaps."

Addy let loose an inhuman growl that unnerved even the Bandit King. He snapped the locket closed. "You have a choice. Either work for me, get your locket back and kill those two." He pointed to Usopp and Nami who simultaneously squeaked. "Or you die with them without your prized possession."

Addy looked towards the ground her head bowed. The choice was perfectly clear. 'I am sorry Riley.' She turned her head back up, her eyes blazing.

"May Ocean swallow you whole and never let you go out of His clutches."

"I am guessing that's a no then," the Bandit King said. "Shame really, could have used you."

"If you think even for a moment that I would ever work for an absolute shithead like yourself than you must be an absolute moron. Well what can I except from a guy who looked like he got his suit out of a leftover bargain bin."

The Bandit King slapped her hard. She could feel her cheek stinging. He hit one of her cuts.

"That was uncalled for," he said. The blade dug deeper into her throat and now more blood was trickling down. "Here I was going to kill you quickly but now I am going have you watch as I kill those two over there slowly." He started walking over towards Nami and Usopp, who were backing themselves into a corner. 'Idiots,' Addy thought. She had to do something.

"What too much of a coward to fight someone who can actually fight back." The sword bit even deeper in and more blood was flowing. It was an absolute bluff. Addy could not even get up if she tried but she had to do something, anything.

It didn't matter in the end though. The sound of rock grounding against rock interrupted everything. Everyone turned to look towards the wall where the sound was coming from. The wall came down revealing another tunnel.

Addy laughed out loud. She would figure out how they were still alive later. Usopp and Nami looked equally ecstatic. Out of the tunnel stepped Luffy and Zoro. Luffy was cracking his knuckles and giving a glare to the Bandit King, who was with surprise at the intrusion.

Zoro was wearing a bandana around his head and giving an absolute death glare to the swordsman holding Addy hostage. The swordsman was staring passively back though did have the courtesy to remove his sword from her throat as Zoro stalked towards him.

It was like the most dramatic staring contest on the face of the planet. Zoro, Addy, and the two remaining bad guys were on one side of the room while Luffy, Nami, and Usopp were on the other.

"Well this should be fun, I would however like to even my odds," The Bandit King said. Addy only then noticed that he was standing by his desk. There was a loud click and suddenly iron bars descended from the roof dividing it in half, leaving Zoro and Addy separated from Luffy and more importantly Luffy separated from the Bandit King.

"Dirk," he said. Addy assumed he was talking to the swordsman. "Kill the swordsman." In the second that Addy had to process what he said the swordsman leapt straight at Zoro, blade drawn, and aiming directly for Zoro's neck.


	7. Tides Come In Part 7

_Author's Note:_

 _This has to be my favorite chapter so far. I don't know what it is but there was something so easy about writing it. As always please review and tell me what you think and what I can improve upon._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy closed her eyes. She did not want to watch this.

'I am sorry to drag you all into this,' she thought. There was a clash of metal on metal, a loud ring echoed. Addy opened her eyes and saw Zoro wielding his three blades. While the other two were normal, the blade in his mouth, it glowed. It was beautiful yet deadly. And then the two-swordsman started moving. The clashing of metal almost drowned out Luffy yelling at the Bandit King to let him kick his ass, along with Usopp and Nami cheering on Zoro. All Addy could do was look. So far no one seemed to have an advantage in this fight.

Instead of looking tired however, Zoro looked excited. He was grinning madly and was clearly enjoying himself.

"Don't be sorry," he said grinning madly. "I haven't had a decent fight in a while."

'He might be a literal demon,' Addy thought. Apparently when he started fighting, there was not much talking. Though that could also be because he had a sword in his mouth. All his concentration was going into blocking blades and trying to get a strike in. His opponent was good as well, though he remained impressively neutral. Not an emotion crossed his face.

Slowly but surely however Zoro was gaining ground. Zoro flowed with his swords as if they were a part of him. He was getting some strikes in while the other swordsman was barely able to touch him despite some of the elaborate moves he was trying to pull now. Feints, crazed slashes, other movements that looked like they belonged in a dance rather than a sword fight. Yet despite it all he remained impassive. It was really creepy Addy thought.

The swordsman jumped in the air to prepare for an aerial attack, but Zoro was ready for it. Zoro leapt up into the air as well, somehow above the other swordsman and made a descending slash.

"Santoryu Maku no Uchi!" Zoro called out intending to slam his opponent into the ground. He barely managed to twist out of the way however and landed gently on his feet. Zoro landed with more of a thud, moving around so that he was standing in front of Addy.

'There is something wrong here.' Addy thought. She tried getting up but could not manage. Her limbs trembled with the effort and blood oozed from various wounds. Her vision was slightly blurry and she started feeling dizzy. After collapsing a few more times she managed to stand up right but she could feel her legs about to give out from underneath her. Her body was definitely going to hate her later. Addy had to find a place out of the way, at least to give Zoro more room to maneuver. She looked to see if she could make her way down the tunnel they came from only to see it sealed off. The entrance that Luffy and Zoro came out of was closed as well. Apparently that button on the desk had more than one use which was really bad for them. Slowly moving across to the corner of the room, she just heard Nami call her name before seeing a sword blade coming towards her shoulder. She tried to back away, but she knew she was too slow. She braced herself for the inevitable however before it could hit her, a small smile graced her lips. At least everything would be over soon and she could see Riley again. In the last moment Zoro stepped in front catching the blade with one of his.

"Coward!" he spat. Zoro looked absolutely murderous but the swordsman in front of him kept staring impassively not even surprised that his blow was blocked. Not even Zoro's killing intent managed to phase the man. Addy wondered if he was a robot because if she was where he was standing, she would be cowering in a corner curled up in a ball, sobbing. Pulling his sword away from Zoro's Addy expected him to go after Zoro, perhaps to try to go for his side or jump up in the air again. What Addy did not expect was for him to swing around and go for her again. Zoro barely managed to block it and ended up getting nicked in the arm. Zoro did not even notice the injury as he lashed out again, with the swordsman jumping back. The robot swordsman was doing what every fighter with a shred of honor absolutely hated, going forward to attack only to pull back again.

"What is up with you?" Zoro hissed. "What are you mute or something?"

"Yes he is actually, so glad you noticed," the Bandit King spoke. "He cannot speak a word. Luckily that does not affect his swordsman skills." As he said that he tried launching himself at Addy again, with Zoro once again blocking it.

It was then Addy figured out what he was trying to do. Zoro could not go out and attack him because otherwise Mr. Mute would strike her down. Meaning that Zoro had to protect her which limited his movements severely while he could attack the two of them with impunity. Which is what exactly he was trying to do now. It was a testament to Zoro's skill how well he was handling himself not only getting in a couple strikes at the guy but defending her as well. However he was not going to defeat him at this rate. Eventually the mute would get a lucky blow in. Then it would be over for both of them.

"Zoro you must realize what he is trying to do at this point," Addy said. Addy thought if he could he would have turned to face her and give her the 'No shit look.' To make up for it he said it out loud. "Then let him attack me."

"What?!" she heard Usopp and Nami yell. Luffy had gone silent and was staring at her hard. Almost as if he was looking into her soul. She flinched under his gaze but held her stance firm. Zoro instead of moving away from her, backed into her even closer so that his back was flushed against her chest. He essentially trapped her between himself and the wall giving himself even less room to maneuver.

"What are you doing?! Let him attack me! Right now I am only in your way! Without me, you would have defeated him by now! You are the better swordsman by far, even a blind man can see that! Stop protecting me and destroy him!"

"He will kill you," Zoro said.

"I know." Addy sighed and closed her eyes. After a moment she opened them. "And I accept that. Let me die."

Her thoughts filled with what she wanted to say but couldn't bring herself to. 'All I have is broken promises and lost dreams. Let me see Riley again.'

"Now I really wished you joined me. Self-sacrifice is such as useful trait," the Bandit King said. Addy glanced towards him though what caught her attention was Luffy. He was looking absolutely livid, though at the Bandit King or her, Addy was unsure.

"Zoro," Luffy said his voice sharp and clear. "Make sure he doesn't hurt her."

"Understood Captain," he replied.

"Luffy," Addy said. "Let Zoro fight this mute bastard!"

"He is."

"No, what I mean is let him fight no holds barred, I am expendable here."

"No."

"Why not?!" she screamed. "I am only in the way here!"

"You are our nakama."

"I am not your damn nakama! Your only here because I asked you and you need me to sail you out of here. Which you can still do without me, considering your stupid amount of luck. This allegiance has been one of convenience."

"If that is the case than why did you not take your treasure?"

Addy stopped there. Why didn't she? She barely knew these people. They were nice people, but that had not stopped her in the past, and her locket, that was everything. She still had something left to do as well. A promise to uphold. Yet she threw that all away when she turned down the Bandit King's offer. Why? Why? Why? It crossed her mind that Luffy and Zoro must have overheard there conversation through the wall. But that still could not explain… than it dawned on her and she let out a small smile.

"Zoro," she asked softly. "Do you trust me?"

There wasn't even a slight hesitation with the yes.

"Then move forward a little."

Zoro did as she asked though with slight hesitancy. In that brief moment a series of actions happened. Addy purposely collapsed on the ground. Usopp and Nami gasped out in shock. Luffy grinned madly. The swordsman readied his attack, a sweeping downward blow, the Bandit King looked surprised and Zoro sheathed one of his swords.

"Nitoryu Nihonshu!" Zoro called. He ran forward attacking his fellow swordsman with a cross cut. Due to the angle of his sword there was no way for him to block it and he took on a direct attack. Blood splattered the walls and the guy fell to the ground. Blacked out.

"Yay Zoro!" Luffy shouted.

"Fantastic, now I have to get new lieutenants," The Bandit King muttered. He walked towards the two of them cracking his knuckles. "Now you made me angry." It almost seemed like there was a glowing red aura surrounding him, pulsating. As he came closer Zoro readied his swords, preparing to attack,

"Santoryu," he started to say but was interrupted when the Bandit King charged forward and punched him in the gut sending him spiraling into a wall. The Bandit King seemed to be in some kind of blood rage. Which Addy should probably be thankful for as that meant that he was busy trying to beat Zoro into a bloody pulp instead of her. And unlike her Zoro seem to be able to handle it, if him standing up and trying to attack the wall of meat was any indication. The Bandit King seemed to have grown three sizes and was acting more like an animal than a human. He wasn't even trying to dodge Zoro's attacks though they seemed to have as much an effect if Nami went up and poked him. They needed Luffy and they needed him now. Luffy was gnawing at the bars as if he realized this as well. Nami was looking around for something to open the gate from her side and Usopp was helping her.

Addy looked around for anything on her side that might help when she spotted the only thing left standing in the room, the desk. Thanking Ocean that it was still standing she made her way there as fast as she could. Which in her case meant crawling slowly trying to avoid Zoro and the Bandit King. At least Zoro managed to figure out what she was doing and was directing the Bandit King as best he could, which was not very well but at least he was trying.

Addy tried crawling across the floor avoiding all the broken pieces of furniture, the remains of the chandelier and whatever else was lying around from the destruction. She could taste the blood in her mouth and the cacophony of noise coming from the battle and the other Straw Hats yelling, desperately looking for a way to open the gate. As much of a powerhouse Zoro was he would not last much longer. If Zoro died…..

Finally managing to claw herself to the desk she started ripping open all the drawers, looking for something anything that would open up the gate.

"Check for secret panels!" Nami called out. Addy did so, carefully feeling around each of the drawers as quickly as she could straining her ears for the sound of a click, or anything that would mark a secret compartment. It proved fruitless however and she looked up at Nami desperately.

"Try the bottom of the desk, see if there is any compartments or a button." Addy ran her hands across the bottom of the desk, desperately looking for even the slightest indentation. Finding nothing, she crawled underneath the desk hoping to see something. Luckily she did because a moment later Zoro was thrown across the room and landed straight on the desk. It did not even buckle under his weight or the force of the throw but Addy saw a compartment slide open and a button reveal itself. She laughed out loud. Pushing the button as quickly as she could. She heard a loud click and climbed out from underneath the desk.

Watching the gate with excitement she prepared it to lift up and Luffy come out barreling out striking the Bandit King with one of his rubber fists. Instead nothing happened. The gate did not so much as budge.

"Oh come on!" Addy yelled, climbing back under the desk and ramming the button. "Why are you not working?!" That's it. It's official. She has the worst luck in the universe. She stared at the button as if it was all its fault before climbing back out from under the desk.

Things were getting really bad now. Zoro was heavily injured, he was not going to be able to take anymore blows. Blood was streaming down him and he was gasping for air as if every breath was precious. The stench of blood and sweat was suffocating now. Addy could barely move, much less go toe to toe with the Bandit King. Heck he was powerful enough to go through walls at this point. Unlike Zoro he just seemed to be getting stronger and stronger, angrier and angrier, as the fight continued.

'He could probably rip through iron at this point' Addy thought. Suddenly an idea dawned on her. When it came to annoying enemies she was the queen, however considering that she was probably slowly bleeding to death that wasn't exactly an option.

"Usopp!" she called out. "Shoot the Bandit King."

"What are you crazy?! He'll come after me!" Usopp yelled back.

"Exactly." It dawned on Usopp what she was asking him to do. Despite his shaky nerves he readied his weapon.

"Make sure he can feel it," Addy called out.

"Please, this will probably take him down in one shot." Usopp drew back his slingshot and let loose the pellet. "Kayaku Boshi!."

The pellet hit the Bandit King directly in his head creating an explosion. He roared and dropped Zoro to the ground with a large thunk. Charging towards Usopp he slammed into the metal bars which buckled under his strengthen. Usopp screamed and ducked under the piece of debris that Nami and him were hiding behind. The Bandit King charged again and the iron bars weakened even further. Luffy prepared his attack, pulling his arm back. After the third charge, the bars broke down and he roared steeping to the other side, gunning towards Usopp with a murderous intent, only to be launched backwards straight over Addy and Zoro to the opposite side of the room with a scream of Gomu Gomu no Pistol.


	8. Tides Come In Part 8

_Authors Note:_

 _This is actually my favorite chapter. It was so much fun to write this though I think the ending is weak. It does contain hints of Zoro/Addy. The story takes place while they are still in East Blue right before they recruit Sanji which is why he isn't here._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Gomu, Gomu no Gatling Gun!" Luffy called out, pummeling the Bandit King even further into the wall. Addy had crawled over towards Zoro and dragged his semi broken body beneath the invincible desk. They basically half carried each other and were huddled up under the desk watching Luffy wail on the guy. Addy was curled under Zoro's arm and pressed into his side. His cheeks were flushed red, most likely from exhaustion. He had taken a beating. A couple of his ribs were broken and probably more than that but she would examine closer once they got out of here, or get someone who is actually qualified to look at him. He kept giving her nervous glances, probably more worried about her them himself. Addy did not want to look at herself in the mirror.

They had their head stuck out and were essentially watching on their stomachs. Luffy was launching attack after attack at the guy but he would not go down. He was just getting angrier and stronger. Lucky Luffy was as flexible and nimble as he was strong otherwise Addy had the feeling that the Bandit King would be using Luffy as a bouncy ball.

That was until the Bandit King got in a lucky hit on Luffy and sent him careening into the wall, only for him to bounce back and punch the Bandit King in the face.

"How?" Addy asked.

"Rubber," Zoro answered. Addy understood immediately. Since Luffy was essentially made out of rubber, blunt attacks would not work. That was how they survived. Luffy was a rubber man and Zoro…. Zoro was just a monster.

"Gomu, Gomu no Yari!" Luffy shouted smashing the Bandit King into the ground, though he just shook it off and continued to try to attack Luffy who reacted with a Gomu, Gomu no Kame. Luffy was out of sight. All they could see were his stretchy limbs and the massive figure of the Bandit King. The Bandit King was getting tired now, Addy could see that he was breathing harder, though Luffy was certainly in the same situation. All those powerful attacks must take something out of him.

The Bandit King noticed apparently, and ripped off the last thing left on the wall. A massive double edged battle axe. Roaring he started swinging it around like a mad man, even more so than before. Addy really put a lot of faith in this desk, otherwise they were going to end up as pulp.

Despite the largeness of the axe it seemed to have given Luffy an advantage, giving him surface room to land some very close range punches. Launching himself at the Bandit King he landed on the axe and got a few good blows in before jumping off to repeat the process. Luckily the axe head was large enough for him to stand on, and even for the Bandit King he was moving it slow enough for Luffy to continuously jump on and off. Of course this did little than annoy him if the more manic axe swings were any indication. He managed to nail Luffy a couple of times, enough so that his shirt was torn up and the blood spilling onto the ground. Collectively the three of them have probably bled enough to form one whole person, and the stench of it was obvious. Due to being trapped in this room everything was being stifled. Even the air was becoming stale and constricting.

"We got to get the door open somehow," Addy said. Zoro looked at her quizzically. "I don't know much about rubber powers but I have a feeling that the farther they stretch back, the more powerful they are." Zoro nodded as Luffy sailed over the desk and to the other side of the room, where they could no longer see the fight, but they can certainly hear it, with the yelling and screaming, from Usopp and Nami, and the angry growls from the Bandit King. "Well essentially Luffy right now is fighting in a broom closet. If we gave him more room he might be able to finish the guy off."

"I know."

"You know?"

Zoro shrugged. "If you knew a way to open a door by now you would have done so by now and Luffy can handle him even with the hindrance."

"Still we should try to figure it out, at least make it easier on him." Addy attempted to get up to examine the doorway, perhaps there was some clue that they missed but Zoro held her down.

"Um Zoro I sort of need to…"

"You're hurt," he said softly.

Addy rolled her eyes, "So are most of us including yourself by the way but…"

"You are hurt," he repeated. He moved his hand to her side and it came back sticky with blood. Addy had no idea how she did not feel that, and it also made her wonder how much blood on Zoro was from him or from her. Speaking of which she was feeling dizzy but she blamed that on whatever she downed during her fight.

She felt around in her pack and pulled out a round of bandages and what looked like a tube of cream. It would not do her any good if she passed out from blood loss. This was going to be hard under a desk but she will have to make do.

Removing her shirt, which at this point could use a good wash she was left in only her sports bra. Zoro was blushing madly now. Perhaps he doesn't get around women a lot which doesn't make sense considering he looks like a sex god.

"Gomu, Gomu no Pistol!" Luffy yelled. Am angry roar proved it was a direct hit and a large crash indicated that Luffy probably sent him into the nearest wall. Luffy had been shouting attacks left and right for awhile now and nothing was working considering that the Bandit King was still standing and not lying on the floor in a coma.

"Zoro," she said snapping his attention back to her. "I need you to rub this one my wounds and then wrap them." Zoro could wait on his injuries, she could not exactly set broken bones here and he could probably have a limb missing and still be fine. However she was going to pass out if something was not done.

"Right," he said still looking like a tomato. Surprisingly his hands were gentle, rubbing the cream in softly and wrapping the bandages as best he could, which considering they were under a desk could have been way worse. He fumbled a little when a large piece of debris went flying over them, followed shortly by the Bandit King and Luffy. Yet he recovered and had her patched up. Though his fingers were trailing over her abs.

"You are very well defined," he said sounding surprised.

"Blame swimming on that."

"Do any lifting?"

"Small hand weights, nothing significant. Want to tone up not build muscle after all. I actually do more flexibility work."

Zoro nodded and withdrew his hand. Addy slipped on her mucky shirt, promising she would jump in the nearest body of water when she got the chance. She turned back on her stomach to see Luffy and the Bandit King staring at each other.

"Enough of this," the Bandit King growled. "This is becoming monotonous. Why are you here anyway?"

"You stole my nakama's treasure!" Luffy shouted though that was less than necessary.

"Treasure? What the Hell are you…. YOU MEAN THAT DAMN LOCKET?! THAT USELESS PIECE OF JUNK! YOU BROKE IN HERE DESTROYED MY OFFICE, DEFEATED MY MINIONS FOR THAT!"

"IT IS HER TREASURE!"

The Bandit King started laughing, uproariously. Addy would not have been surprised if the town heard him from here.

"That has to be the dumbest reason I have ever heard in my life. What is she blackmailing you or something? Offering sex? What?"

"She is my nakama."

"So what you're going to risk your life, the lives of your friends, for a little trinket that you could find on any fricken beach in the world?"

"YES!"

"WHY?!"

Luffy was looking at him like he was the dumbest person in the world. He shook his head.

"She is our nakama. You hurt her and now I hurt you back."

Addy stared slack jawed at Luffy in absolute disbelief. She honestly thought that the only reason Luffy came with her was because they needed a way off the island. Not that… Thoughts that she not had for a while came back to her mind, and a feeling, a feeling that she thought that she would never have again came rising up in her chest. It was still missing, it always will but at this moment it was cloudy as if filled by something light. She felt….

Whole.

"Well if that is the case then," the Bandit King drawled. "I might as well show you the truth." He put his hand in his pocket and drew out her locket. Holding it between two fingers he lifted it up for all of them to see. "What a fragile thing this is, how easy it would be to crush,"

"NO!" Addy screamed trying to get up, but Zoro was holding her down. "LET GO OF ME!"

"It seems like your friends are not here to help you," the Bandit King laughed. "Such a shame, but perhaps this will teach you to make sure that your treasure is not so fragile."

Suddenly a single pachinko ball came out of nowhere and knocked the locket out of the Bandit Kings handle, sending it to the floor only for Nami to catch it. The Bandit King turned in surprise, rage etched onto his face.

"GOMU GOMU NO…" Luffy shouted stretching his arms back. Addy and Zoro climbed out from under the desk and looked behind them to see and opening to a tunnel in the back of the room and Usopp standing by a lever.

"BAZOOKA!" Luffy launched his arms forward sending the guy straight through the wall, which was the entrance that Addy, Nami and Usopp originally came out of. He went flying out so that they could no longer see him, but they heard a loud crash, signaling his impact.

"It's over," Addy whispered collapsing on her hands and knees.

"Not yet, we still have to get out," Nami said. "Here you go." Nami placed the locket in Addy hands and Addy stared dumbstruck. The rest of them crowed around her, just watching. Addy could feel tears in the corner of her eye. Her shoulders started to shake, tears falling down her face but instead of sobbing she grinned and started laughing. The rest had soon joined her. She put the spare chain she carried through the locket and put it around her neck, where it belonged.

Nami helped her up and Addy was using her as a crutch. Zoro offered to help but she dismissed him, pointing out his own injuries that needed to be looked at. All of them together looked like a disaster and Addy figured they could all use a good nap and some food.

"Now that's all over with… how do we get out of here?" Addy asked. "Because I am not going down the tunnel where Luffy launched the Bandit King.

"Follow me," Luffy said. Turning towards the tunnel that Usopp opened. Zoro followed him immediately, leaving Usopp, Nami and Addy alone in the broken-down room with the two lieutenants who somehow managed to end up in a corner on top of one another.

Addy shrugged, "Might as well, it is either that or stay here and wait for them to wake up." She pointed to the lieutenants. They followed Luffy as quickly as they could passing over unconscious bodies, and trying to avoid tripping over stuff. They made their way through long corridors, stylishly decorated rooms, and not so stylishly decorated rooms including a room filled with bunk beds.

'Well at least I know where I will be sleeping for the next couple of days' Addy thought. It was a huge chamber with multiple levels filled with bunk beds. Addy counted at least 40. This must have been where all the bandits stayed. The question is then where were they?

"Oh we kicked their asses," Luffy said. Apparently Addy asked that out loud.

"What all of them?" Nami asked.

"Yes," Zoro answered.

"What? How? Where are they? You know what never mind. I am better off not knowing." After following Luffy for what seemed like forever, they finally reached their goal.

The kitchen.

"Why am I not surprised?" Nami said. Luffy was stuffing his face already. Addy was surprised that there still was food considering Luffy had to have been here at least once. Apparently though there was enough food to last the army of bandits living in the mountains several months. Which should be enough to last Luffy at least two days.

"Hey," Addy called out. The others turned towards her. "Why don't we bring this all into the room with the beds so once we are done-" Addy did not even get a chance to finish her sentence as before she could blink, Luffy had the food packed in large canvas bags, which she is not even sure where he got from and handed one to Usopp and Zoro and carried one himself before racing back to the bunk bed room, which he surprising managed to find.

After laying all the food out and eating until they were stuffed Luffy collapsed on one of the beds completely distended. Zoro was asleep a couple of beds down and Usopp was in a bed on the other side of Luffy, snoring loudly. Only Nami and Addy were still up. Nami was leaning on her looking like she was about to collapse.

"Oh right, do you want me to check out your injuries?" Nami yawned.

"No, Zoro actually patched me up while Luffy was fighting."

"What really? You sure you don't want me to look at it."

"No its fine. Why do you ask?

Nami huffed. "Zoro does the worst bandaging job I have ever seen in my life. His hands feel like sandpaper and he wraps everything too tightly and wastes half the bandages. I started doing it myself just to save the effort."

"Right, well I didn't actually noticed anything wrong, speaking of injuries we should probably treat Luffy and Zoro. Which one do you want?"

"Luffy, Zoro is an absolute monster if you wake him up for anything less than a full on emergency. Luffy will not wake up at all."

"If you say so." Nami got up bandages in hand and headed towards Luffy. Addy headed towards Zoro. Crossing over to where he was sleeping, she placed a hand on him to try to get him up, than shook him up a little but he was dead to the word. Not that she blamed him.

Lifting up his shirt she checked over his ribs. Some were definitely broken, it would take a while for him to heal. Addy hesitated before wrapping the bandages on him. And he called her well defined.

After that was done Addy looked to see that Nami collapsed on a bed on the farthest side of the room. Sleep was something she needed as well. Climbing into the bed that was on Luffy's other side. Closing her eyes she drifted off, clutching her locket in her hand.


	9. Tides Come In Part 9

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is the second to last chapter. We are nearing the end._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

They were up after a rest. Addy was unsure how long they had been asleep but it must have been several hours. After taking a shower and cleaning off her clothing the best she could she wrapped clean bandages around herself. Her body was screaming in protest with every movement but it did not matter. The familiar weight around her neck and the warmth she felt in her chest was worth every injury.

Addy then made sure that everyone else was treated. Nami and Usopp were okay, a few scratches but nothing major. Lufy had to be distracted with food in order to make sure that he sat still enough for Addy to check him out. Even Zoro was wearing various bandages after Addy fought with him about it. He was still grumbling though saying that they were too confining. The Straw Hats were sitting around eating breakfast and deciding the best course of action for getting out of the mountain and back down towards civilization.

"We are not walking back down the mountain. It was hard enough getting up here. We got lucky we made it here the first time. Does anyone actually know where that entrance is anyway?" Nami said. "The bandits must have a quick way to get down the mountain otherwise they would not be raiding the town every other day. Right Addy?"

"I would assume so, but the question is where. Most likely there would be a map in the Bandit King's office but that was sort of destroyed. And I don't know about you but I don't exactly want to go back there and look. "

"Arrrg! Okay what other options do we have? Luffy stop chewing so loudly your breaking my concentration." She hit him on the head creating a rather large bump.

"Mufwfre, cfhofhufhjldhf, tahdke, tndhkde mefifhne cahrdjfht," Luffy said mouth full of food.

"What are you saying?" Addy asked.

"He said we could take the minecart," Zoro answered.

"There's a mine cart?! And you didn't say so before?!" Nami said now hitting Zoro over the head.

"Yeah it's right by the treasure room," Luffy stated before taking another bite of meat.

"TREASURE ROOM?!" As Nami was yelling at the two of them, Addy turned towards Usopp.

"Is it sad that I am getting used to the madness?" she asked.

"Yes," Usopp answered. "But at least we will be sad together."

"I heard that misery loves company."

"All right here is the plan," Nami called out. "We will go to the treasure room, take as much as we can. Get out of this place on mine carts and set sail."

"Yosh, off to the Grand Line," Luffy yelled.

It didn't take too long to find the treasure room. And by too long it meant a couple of hours since neither Zoro nor Luffy seemed to remember where it was. How these two managed to get anywhere was beyond her. How did they not get lost at sea before Nami joined them? Addy had to break out the chalk again but they managed to find it. When they did it was like Nami was in heaven. There was gold stacked in numerous piles. Jewels sorted by their various colors strewn about. Chests filled with jewelry. Addy gravitated towards the blue jewels wondering if she could take one without Nami noticing. She would rather not take the chance. Nami's wrath was not something she wanted.

Nami's eyes turned into beli's and she started throwing every piece of treasure she could get her hands on into sacks. Addy got lucky and was stuck carrying the rest of the supplies they nicked. The rest of them, Nami included were loaded up with treasure. Addy wasn't exactly sure how much it was all worth but it had to be a lot considering the way Nami's eyes were glinting.

After several more wrong turns they figured out where the mine carts were and Addy was less than thrilled with what was in front of them.

Essentially the mine cart track just dipped into darkness. Addy could not see where it would lead too. Usopp was quaking saying he was catching Can't-Go-Into-Minecart disease. Luffy meanwhile looked like a kid who wandered into a free candy store. Addy was sure she never saw someone sparkle as much as he was right now.

There were three mine carts. Each mine cart could fit two people and one bag or one person and three bags. Unlike regular mine carts they actually had seats so you could strap yourselves in. Surprisingly Addy did not find this very comforting. There were also harnesses so that the bags could be locked down. This is how Luffy ended up with three bags in front after he declared that he would be first and after Nami made him promise several times that he would not let any of the bags go flying and if any of them did he would catch them with his ridiculous stretchy limbs. So Luffy became guardian of the supplies and the least valuable treasure. Nami and Usopp were in the next car with the most valuable treasure, Nami would not let it out of her sight, and Addy and Zoro in the back with the moderately valuable goods.

"This has to be one of the dumbest things I ever done," Addy said sitting in the mine cart.

"This is the dumbest thing I have ever done," Usopp said, turning his head as best he could, which wasn't much considering how tightly they were strapped in.

"Well perhaps this will be okay after all we don't know how fast this thing goessssss…." Addy words were lost in the wind as Luffy pulled the lever and off they went.

It felt like they were going supersonic and in complete darkness it was immensely disorientating. All she could hear was Nami and Usopp screaming, not that she blamed them and Luffy laughing. Addy was holding Zoro's hand in a vice like grip. She knew that it was going to leave bruises and if he wasn't gripping her as hard than she would have felt bad. Zoro apparently had the same feeling of complete death traps as she did, absolute hatred. There were various sharp twists and turns and loops that left Addy out of breath and completely directionless. She was not even sure which way was up at this moment.

After what seemed like an eternity but was probably only a minute, Addy could feel themselves slow down to the gently pace of a ship at full speed. The entered a tunnel lite by torches and Addy could feel the heavy moisture in the air. Now that Addy could see, she felt like they were heading down.

"I think we are under the river," Addy said.

"Really?! Cool!" Luffy exclaimed.

"I guess it is."

"No its not! What if the roof above us starts breaking?!" Usopp asked.

"I highly doubt that, more likely the bandits have it so that the tunnel would start flooding in from water collected from the ocean. You know to kill any people who might be trying to escape." As she said that there was a rushing sound of water, a lot of water. Addy turned around to barely see a massive wave of water approaching them. Nami turned and gave her a death glare before prompting yelling at Luffy to make this thing go faster. He pushed the lever down to increase the speed and off they went again leaving the water trying to play catch up.

"You know I hope Luffy does not push it too hard," Addy replied. "Otherwise the break might snap."

"WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?!" Nami and Usopp said simultaneously. Only to see Luffy hold up the broken lever with a large grin on her face. Now she had two death glares instead of one.

"Okay look the situation can't get much worse I mean it's not like there are multiple tracks or anything." Suddenly the carts shifted tracks and instead of heading down they were going off to the side. "You know I think I am going to keep my mouth shut."

"You do that," Nami huffed. The train was hurdling at rapid pace now. However Addy could see a light and the rocketed towards it, only to see that the track ended abruptly and they were freefalling through the air.

"Gomu, Gomu no Fusen!" Luffy called out getting out of the mine cart and jumping so that he was below the mine carts. He inhaled air until he was literally a giant balloon. The carts bounced up and down on top of his stomach until they landed on the ground, battered but alive.

Addy undid the harness and collapsed out of the mine cart. The others basically did the same. She felt a bunch of hands on her and she opened her eyes to see some of the concerned villagers looking down at her, including Paisley who was stuck between laughing and crying. Addy looked around and saw that they landed directly in the middle of a wheat field.

"Sorry about that," Addy said.

"Sorry, you're sorry?" Paisley asked. "Do you even know what you did?"

"Destroy your crop field?"

"Well, yes. But you also chased off the bandits. We saw there ship leaving only for it to crash directly into the rocks." No surprise there. "We are going to have a party to celebrate tonight."

"Sounds lovely," Addy said before drifting off.

…

She woke up sometime later in the doctor's house fully bandaged up. It was a simple place, medicines lined the wall. Numerous beds for patients. Addy could hear the sounds of merriment outside and when she looked out the window she saw that it was nighttime but there were numerous lights on and sounds of music and laughter filled the air even inside the building. The smell of food was wafting through the window.

Paisley was looking at her with a glint in her eye and a bottle in hand. Addy took it and glug it down, putting it down on the bedside table only for Paisley to hand her another.

"You probably should not be drinking with your condition," Paisley said.

"Minor detail," Addy replied sipping at this one. "How long has it been going on?"

"Only a few hours. Started when the first of your friends woke up, the guy in the Straw Hat. You're the last one up."

"Hope there not causing too much trouble."

"Oh they are an absolute blast once they figured out that you were not going to die on them. Doc had to basically throw them out."

"Really?" Addy still found it surprising that they stuck so close to her.

"Really."

Addy got out of bed and carefully stood up. She was wrapped up tightly in bandages and probably should not be moving but right now she needed out.

"Joining us?" Paisley smiled.

"No, not yet I need time…"

"To think?" Addy smiled at her. Paisley got it. Addy left out of the back door and walked the narrow path towards the beach. The smell of the ocean calmed her immensely and the feel of sand between her toes brought out that playful side of her. Addy walked towards the ocean until the gentle waves lapped at her feet.

"What should I do?" she asked seemingly to no one. She took out her locket and opened it up. The picture was undamaged thankfully though the case was a little cracked. Addy would repair it later. She sat down on the sand and stared at the ocean, not caring that the tide was coming in. The moon was bright tonight and it reflected in the waves giving them a silvery glow.

She felt more than she saw someone approach her. Having a good guess as to who it was she turned to see Luffy smiling at her. Hadley was standing not too far away, clearly having led him here. Addy beckoned her closer and she ran forward and leapt into her lap. Addy smiled and ruffled her hair.

"Shouldn't you be at the party devouring everything in sight?" she asked Luffy.

Luffy grinned and handed her a plate of fish. Her breath hitched. He actually noticed. "Not a party until everyone joins," he replied. He extended his hand towards her and Addy looked at for a second before turning to look at him. Looking into his eyes she saw two things, absolute love and a burning undercurrent. A dream so strong it meant everything. Addy was seeing the same look that Riley had given her so many times, the same look she used to see in herself before…

"Tell me, do you think you can be the Pirate King?" she asked him.

He looked at her and laughed. "I will be Pirate King," he answered. Tears flew down her eyes and she started laughing as well. Hadley looked at the two of them confused.

"What's so funny," she asked crossing her arms. Addy continued laughing holding her in her arms as she got up and walked with Luffy towards the celebration.

"Hopefully you will understand someday," Addy answered.

…

The party was an absolute mob scene. Addy being thanked left and right by people she didn't even know lived in the village. Was there a secret hidden village somewhere?

Addy ended up drunkenly dancing with Nami and Paisley, and regular dancing with Luffy who was so bad he might as well have been drunk. Usopp was busy spinning wild tales that were clearly lies but the children were enraptured. Zoro was basically drinking through the entire villages' supply of alcohol, though Nami and her were giving him a run for his money. Addy was half tempted to drag him into a dance but he glared at her when she even made the suggestion.

It went on for hours, the stars were high in the sky and there was merriment all around. Things started winding down about an hour before dawn. Once people started collapsing in a stupor Addy went back to the beach and laid down in the sand. Her cheeks were flushed and she would have a killer hangover in the morning but it was worth it. As she closed her eyes to fall asleep and the music merged with the sound of the gentle waves, Addy felt at peace.

"Dad," she whispered, the words caught by a sea breeze. "I know this is an odd request but can you make sure that my mother knows that I am okay and that I've found a new home." Addy smiled as the waves washed over her without her moving. Tomorrow she was going to set off for the Grand Line, for Paradise and the New World. For Raftel, where they will find the One Piece and who knows what else. Addy laughed and thought 'Riley, I finally found the right person. Now all I have to do is make sure that he becomes Pirate King.'


	10. Tides Come In Part 10

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is it. The end of the first arc. I hope that everyone enjoyed it. This was a lot of fun to write. The second arc is already in the works so keep an eye out for Empty Minds, Empty Boxes. As always please review and let me know what I can do better._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

Addy woke up to see Luffy standing over her with big black owl eyes and a gigantic smile. He was like a cross between a puppy and an owl. Paisley was standing beside him with a glass in one hand and pills in the other. She grabbed the pills and water a downed them before turning to Luffy.

"So when are we leaving?" she asked.

"Nami said as soon as you're ready. She already packed your stuff. It's on the Merry now."

"Great, I will meet you by the docks. There are some things I need to do first."

"Okay," Luffy left, heading off, probably towards the Merry.

"The Merry at the dock?" Addy asked getting up with Paisley help.

"Yes it is. It's quite something."

"Somehow I don't like the sound of that."

"Oh it's a good ship. I just don't think it is what you are expecting."

"When do I ever get what I am expecting?"

Addy and Paisley walked back to the inn, taking the same path that they always did. Who knows when Addy would be able to walk this path again. Chances are she would not be back for years, if she came back at all. The people waved as they walked, still thanking Addy for what she did though she told them that she did not do all that much, it was mostly the others who did all the work. Without each of them, Luffy, Zoro… even Nami and Usopp she would have not made it. Now they are her nakama, and she is theirs.

When they reached the inn. Paisley closed the door and flipped the open sign to close. It was basically decreed that today would be a holiday mostly because nobody could function after last night's party. Those were the best kinds of holidays. Hadley was sitting on the stairs heading up towards the rooms, when Addy came in she launched herself and gripped her legs.

"Are you really going?" she asked. Addy could tell she was trying to hold back tears.

"Yes I am. It's time," she replied.

"Will you come back?"

"Maybe someday Hadley, I cannot make any promises. Adventures are lying in wait out there and who knows where they are going to take me."

"You are really going to be a pirate?"

"I was always a pirate Hadley. I was born a pirate, raised as a pirate. I will live the rest of my life as a pirate and I will die as a pirate, sailing under that waving black flag. But I promise you Hadley, I am going to be the best possible pirate I can be."

Hadley nodded sniffling but let her go. Addy walked up the stairs and into the room where she had stayed in. Going over it once to make sure that Nami did not miss anything. After seeing that she did a pretty through job, Addy got into the shower to wash out the sand covering her body. Sand will always and forever be a problem. The stuff gets everywhere. Fighting a Devil Fruit sand user in the desert would be one of Addy worst nightmares. Crocodile flashed in her mind but she dismissed it. Whatever reason would they have for fighting him at least currently? She would be more than willing to take down those government dogs once she got stronger.

After getting all the sand off, Addy put back on her clothes. Before she left for downstairs she lingered for a while. This room had become a home away from home of sorts. Ever since that merchant ship randomly stopped here and she decided to get off. Originally it was a temporary resting stop but now…. It was something more. She will always have fond memories of this place but it was time for her to go home.

Home.

Addy sprinted towards the docks in excitement. Waving goodbye as she ran past. Home, she was going home. With her nakama and her ship they were going to sail until the end of the seas and perhaps even beyond that. Reaching the docks she stopped to see the Going Merry in all its glory.

It was a caravel. With two levels that led to the inside of the ship and staircases that offered access to the different decks. Addy saw that they did not yet have a pirate mark. 'That will change soon,' she thought. The figure head was that of a sheep with horns. Addy laughed.

"So that is why it's called the Going Merry," she said.

"What is that?" Nami asked. Addy turned towards her.

"You know, Mary had a little lamb. His fleece was white as snow."

Nami looked at her, then back at the ship and then back at her again. "I think you're the first person to point that out. Do not mention that to Luffy because then we will hear nothing but the rhyme for the rest of time. Anyway would you like a tour?"

"No thanks." Nami looked at her surprised. "I will get to know her later." Nami shrugged and lead her to the ladder that went down the side of the ship. Climbing up Addy could already feel the warmth and the love the ship exuberated, though there was a sense of wariness as well.

'You and me will get along fine' she thought. Now that she was on board Addy got a real sense of the ships layout.

"Where are the others?" she asked Nami.

"Still in town getting some more supplies, the village is basically giving stuff away."

"You sent Usopp to make sure that they would not get lost, did you?"

"Pretty much, your stuff is in my… well I guess our room now."

"Sure thing, I am going to explore a bit."

Nami waved her off and laid down on a lounge chair relaxing in the sun. Addy went off to the most important room in her mind, the helm. Climbing up the stairs she got an overview of the whole ship, small but comfortable. Addy would be happy here. Merry was still being quiet but what could Addy expect. She was still a stranger. Once Luffy got here that would change.

Addy opened the door to the helm, which also looked like it was the kitchen as well as a general meeting room. However when she spotted what she was looking for Addy whistled through her teeth.

'This is going to be tricky,' she thought looking at the steering pole. There was no clear way to look out to sea and watch the currents other than through the door. Addy was going to have to rely on her instincts and skill as well as Nami's if they were going to make this work.

'I would kill for a wheel,' she thought taking the steering pole in hand. It melded right with her, as if Addy was a part of the ship. 'This is good and I always did enjoy a challenge.'

"ADDDDDDDDDDDDY!" Luffy called. She let go of the wheel and walked out the door and leapt over the railing, landing gently on the main deck.

"Set sail to the Grand Line," Luffy called out looking at her. The rest turned as well looking like they half expected her to perform some sort of magic spell.

"Well first things first," she said. "We need to lift up the anchor." They turned towards Zoro who pulled up the anchor in less time than it took for Addy to finish the sentence and looked back towards her. "And now we wait."

"That's it?" Nami asked.

"Pretty much, if we sailed off now we end up getting smashed into those rocks over there." Addy pointed to where the wreckage of the bandit's ship lay. "Now I say we have to give it about 20 minutes so that the current is in the correct position with the tide so that we can sail out of here and actually hit the current we need to get out of here directly and into East Blue. Three of them stared blankly at her but Nami looked at her brightly.

"I get it. With the tide comes or out a change in the currents occurs leading to or from the beach. Normally this current would lead you astray however during a certain time in the tides you can actually hitch a ride to the main current."

"Basically, it's a bit more complicated than that. With most places you can normally sail out. Here there are various hidden currents underneath the surface which occasionally run into each other. As the tides change the currents move as well. So while at one point everything might be fine, the next you can find yourself heading directly for a cliff. We are going to have to actually time it right because we will be sailing through multiple currents until we get on the one that takes out of here safety."

"What do we have to do then?" Usopp asked.

"Whatever Nami tells you to do." Addy answered. "We will set off in 17 min."

"Yosh," Luffy said. Using his stretchy arms to launch himself on top of the figure head.

"Is it really safe for him to be there?" Addy asked.

"It's his special seat," Zoro answered as if that explained everything. Addy nodded and turned back towards the helm. Nami started telling Usopp and Zoro what to do with the sails. Addy trusted Nami knows what she is doing. She was a brilliant navigator. Taking the pole in hand she sent of a small prayer to Ocean for safe travels.

After what seemed like no time had passed Addy felt a subtle shift in the waves. Addy gently shifted the pole to the left keeping a close eye on what she could see of the waves from the open door. Addy started counting the second off in her heads, if she was even off by one than it was goodbye Straw Hats.

Once she counted to 135 she made a hard right turn, they had to jump currents before the ship would be pulled to the rocky shore. Now comes the hard part. Turning sharply to the left she stayed on that course for barely a minute before turning a hard right. Waited another minute before making a sharp left. Addy was going to have to do this for 20 minutes before hitting the current that would actually take them out of the island's danger zone.

"What are you doing?" Usopp came in asking, just as Addy was making another hard turn throwing him into the wall.

"I am making a zig zag pattern across the currents, it's the only way to make sure that we aren't trapped and dragged towards the deadly rocks." Addy pushed towards the other direction throwing Usopp and probably the others onto the other side of Merry. "Nami got you controlling the sails?"

"USOPp! LUFFY! Come down here and help Zoro!" Usopp scurried off as best as he could considering the rocking of the ship. Addy whispered some words to Merry and that seemed to have calmed down her rocking motions. They were a lot less rough and more manageable. Once Addy felt a slight dip in the ship she quickly turned the ship so that it was horizontal. However instead of going straight on, the current was pulling the ship horizontally out towards the open ocean.

"Addy what's going on?" Nami called.

"Don't worry this is normal," she answered. "It should only last a few minutes, like five at the most."

"You seemed really relaxed about this."

"Nami when I said I was the best helmsman your will probably ever meet, I wasn't joking. Even the tricky part of this is a cake walk. Just make sure that they don't destroy the sails or something."

"Oh they will be fine. Luffy thinks it's the coolest thing in the world right now." Just then there was another dip that the ship made and Addy quickly maneuvered the ship so that it was facing straight on. They were in the clear.

"How did you do that? You moved the ship barely touching the pole. Usually we have to yank it completely to one side or another."

Addy looked at her in complete horror. Her imagination conjured up images of Luffy or Zoro breaking the thing in half. She said something about skill and the proper way to treat a caravel and Addy had the feeling it turned into a lecture for a good while because the next thing she knew it Nami shoved a tankard in her hand and pulled her outside.

Luffy was sitting there on the deck grinning, Usopp was next to him and Zoro was leaning on the mast. They all had tankards in hand.

"What is going on?" Addy asked.

Luffy grinned. "You are our new nakama which means it's time to celebrate."

"I… wait what?"

"You're a Straw Hat now," Luffy said.

"Forever?" she asked.

Luffy started laughing long and hard and when he looked up again there were tears in his eyes, "Silly, nakama are forever."

She looked at Luffy and then turned to face all the others as well. Usopp and Zoro were spouting grins. Nami was giving a bright smile, but there seemed to be something sad to it as if her mind were on other things, and she did not quite believe what Luffy was saying. She will soon though, after all Luffy had managed to convert Addy. Whatever was going on with Nami Luffy would stop at nothing to help her and therefore neither would Addy.

She looked back at Luffy, who had gotten up and was standing right in front of her expectantly. Addy lifted up her tankard, "Whatever you say… Captain. Now are we going to Kanpai or what?"

They all gathered closely together and lifted up their drinks in the air, shouting Kanpai for the entire world to hear. After that they all had their own little Straw Hats party. It wasn't anything big or grand but it was like family coming together. All the little pieces fit. As the sun began to set Addy volunteered to take first watch, she was after all the newest crew member.

As the others went to bed Addy walked across the deck, sitting on the railing right beside the figure head.

"So are you going to talk to me now?" she asked seemingly talking to the air. "I promise I won't tell them if you don't want me to."

" _No that's okay, I would not mind,_ " a gentle feminine voice spoke. " _How can you hear me?"_

"You already know the answer to that, but please tell me about yourself, everything and anything you can think of."

The voice laughed. " _There are only three things you need to know and you know two of them already. My name is Going Merry, I am the Straw Hats pirate's ship, and I am going to sail with you guys forever._ "


	11. Empty Minds, Empty Boxes Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the second arc of the story. It is entirely based on episode 18 of the anime. A lot of the dialogue is taken directly from a fan translated version so if there are any major errors let me know. And always please review._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

Technically it had been less than 24 hours since Addy joined and already major changes needed to be made. For one if they were actually pirates then they were going to need a pirate mark. She was on the dock, looking up to the crow's nest where their flag should be waving. When she brought it up to Luffy he decided to start working on one and settled down in a corner with several buckets of paint and a large black cloth. Zoro was taking a nap while Nami was sitting down looking at various maps. Usopp was by the figure head doing something before jumping down a swinging a stick around. He had a very active imagination.

"C'mon, you guys. Show some interest in other people…" Usopp started to say before Luffy jumped up and interrupted him.

"All done!" Luffy called out, causing Usopp to jump back. Addy turned around to look at what Luffy made. He was holding it in both hands his arms stretched out so they could see it fully. She had to blink a couple of times to be sure of what she was seeing. While it wasn't the worst piece of art…. That was all Addy could say about it.

"Look! A pirate flag!" Luffy said. Well Addy could give him credit there. Technically it was a pirate flag. "Now that Addy's joined and we have five people, we need to have our own mark."

Zoro had the exact same expression that she did. "That's our mark?" he asked stunned.

Luffy was grinning madly. "Whadya think? Nice, huh?!"

"A pirate flag is a symbol of death. A symbol of fear," Zoro responded.

"I do sense fear, though. Fear of your talent," Nami added in. Thankfully one of them could give an honest opinion.

"It is not quite what I imagined," Addy said.

" _I think it's cute,_ " Merry said.

Addy rolled her eyes, "A pirate flag is not meant to be cute."

Usopp started tutting, "Wish you would've told me first," he said. "Don't forget about me, the gifted artist."

"Gifted artist?" Luffy asked. Addy was questioning this as well. Nami and Zoro looked as equally doubtful.

"I've drawn graffiti on walls for 50 years straight," Ussop replied. Well at least one part of that answer was possible. "When it comes to painting, I'm in a league all my own." Compared to the rest of the crew maybe, though Addy would have to see his talent in action before making that judgement.

"Awesome! 50 years?" Luffy asked astounded.

"That means he's an old man now," Zoro stated. Usopp started looking a little less boastful.

"Not only that, he must have 5 or 6 grandkids by now," Nami added in.

"Perhaps even a few great grandkids," Addy chipped in.

"That's awesome too," Luffy said.

"Hey," Usopp stated. "I am not that old." Nami, Zoro and Addy started laughing while Luffy looked confused.

"Whatever Usopp, will be the judge of your skill after you get it done," Addy said heading back to the helm. She needed to adjust their course slightly. The rest broke off as well doing various other things.

" _I am sure that it will be great_ ," Merry said.

"I hope for all our sakes it is," Addy answered.

After adjusting their course Addy came back down and sat beside Nami on the deck, watching Usopp with mild interest.

After what seemed like no time at all he appeared to be finished.

"Alright. Behold this work of art," he said. Zoro and Luffy stood on either side of him. He held it up for all of them to look at. While it was miles better than Luffy attempt there was still something wrong with it. That being it wasn't Luffy's flag.

"Who told you to make your flag?" Luffy said. Both him and Zoro punched him in the head. That must have hurt. At the rate they were going they were going to use most of their supply of black cloth.

Usopp started again but this time they stood over him. Addy admitted that he had marvelous technique and when he was done she whistled appreciatively.

"I guess that's more like it." Ussop said.

"Wow, it's pretty good," Nami said.

"Yeah. It's good. I like it," Luffy said.

"So this is our mark," Zoro added in.

" _Can we have it on the sail as well,"_ Merry asked.

"Alright. Usopp. Draw one on the sail, too."

"Looks like Captain had the same idea," Addy said.

"Right," Usopp stated.

It took him a few hours but Usopp got it on the sail for the entire world to see. Addy swelled with pride, this is the mark of the future pirate king. The mark that she will sail under.

"Alright. All done," Luffy called out standing directly behind the figure head. It was indeed. They had two pirate flags, one flying from the crow's nest and the other at the back of the ship on top of the red and white sail. That plus the giant mark on the sail made sure that everyone knew who they were. "Now the Going Merry pirate ship is all set." Addy could hear him laughing.

Usopp was collapsed on the ground exhausted and the rest of them were sitting around him with Zoro having his back to the mast.

"I'm pooped," Usopp stated. Addy did not blame him in the slightest.

" _Addy, I think a storm is coming_ ," Merry said. Addy could feel the wind starting to pick up.

"Is this the right way? It seems kinda dangerous," Luffy said. They all got up and turned towards what Luffy was looking at. A massive black cloud on the horizon.

Nami grabbed one of her maps and started studying it, "Wait," she said. Usopp and Addy turned towards her. She quickly dashed to the storage room and came back with a pair of binoculars. Walking up the stairs towards the figure head Usopp, Zoro and Addy followed her.

Addy was not sure what she was seeing but apparently made Nami excited. "That's it," she said. "That's the place. No doubt about it." She put the binoculars down.

"Do you see something neat?" Luffy asked.

"The legendary Treasure Island," she replied.

"The legendary Treasure Island? I've heard of that before," Usopp stated.

"The legendary what now?" Addy asked.

"Treasure Island, it's a famous island among pirates," Nami said. "As are the weird stories about it."

"Weird stories?" Luffy asked. Addy was thankful that she wasn't the only one who was completely clueless here. Perhaps it was only famous among East Blue Pirates. Because no one in their right minds would name an island Treasure Island. That was just asking for trouble.

"Yeah, that whoever gets near the island incurs a god's wrath," Nami replied. Oh it's one of those stories then. Nothing to be worried about.

The ship had sailed into the storm as they were talking and lighting was threatening to strike the mast. As the thunder, boomed Usopp let out a loud shriek. Addy was unsure if that was because of the storm or the not so scary story Nami just told. She hoped it was the storm.

The waves were starting to get rough as well. Addy made a mad dash for the helm, moving quickly across the ship. When she got there she grabbed the pole with both hands in an attempt to hold it steady.

She started to turn away from the storm when Nami called out. "Addy we are heading to the island. Keep the ship as straight as possible. It's right in front of us."

"No problem, she called back, hoping that the wind did not carry her voice away. She guided the ship making sure to avoid the larger waves. Merry was telling her what was happening outside, warning her when various waves were approaching. Since the wind was with them it wasn't long until they reached the island though they had to drop anchor a little bit away from the beach. The ocean too chaotic for them to get close. After Zoro dropped the anchor Addy came out and took a good look at the island. It looked like several rocks stacked on top of each other, with a forest covering them, like moss on a stone. Lighting flashed adding to the drama.

"Let's go," Luffy called out.

"Wait a second," Nami said. The three of them were standing beside her with Luffy behind them. We should wait for the storm to pass than see if we can get clos-" She did not get a chance to finish as Luffy launched them all towards the shore. Luckily the sand was soft and wet so it did not get all over them and they all managed to land fairly intact which was good considering some of them still had injuries from the Bandit King.

"WHAT THE HELL!" Nami screamed conking Luffy on the head. Addy figured she might be at it for a while so she helped Usopp up since he got his head stuck in the sand. Zoro was already up and surveying their surroundings.

"Thanks," he replied. "Luffy sure knows how to make a landing."

"I don't think we know the worst of it," Addy answered. Usopp let out a shudder.

After raging at him for a few minutes Nami calmed down. Looking around she spotted what looked like an opening in the tree line and headed towards it. The rest of them followed if only to get out of the rain though Addy would have been happy staying where she was for a few more moments.

It was more rainforesty that the forest on the previous island though luckily there was not too much in their way. Zoro had to get out his swords a couple of times grumbling about it but they were making their way through at a steady pace. Usopp looked around nervously and had his hands up in case he needed to grab onto Zoro for whatever reason. Luffy was right behind Nami and Addy was behind Luffy with Zoro and Usopp following her. After a plant that had more teeth than necessary scared Usopp he started to cling onto Zoro.

"This is one creepy island," Usopp stated.

"I don't know about that…" Addy started to say.

"No, you are from the Grand Line. You don't get to decide what is creepy, or scary or dangerous."

Addy shrugged not faulting his logic. They did have very different parameters for what to consider scary after all.

"It's said that an extraordinary treasure rests somewhere on this island." Nami said. Right, treasure that is what they were looking for. Addy was always good for treasure hunting. "Supposedly, lots of pirates have landed here in the past, but they've all fled in terror before they could even look for it."

"In terror?" Luffy asked.

"Why in the world would they do that?" Addy asked as well. It seemed too implausible for an island in East Blue to have this sort of reputation.

"Supposedly, one pirates face suddenly changed into a boar's face," Nami answered. "And another's mustache stretched out and strangled him like snakes."

"That's not real, right?" Ussop asked quaking.

"Though I'm sure the stories are exaggerated somewhat," Nami continued.

"They would have to be. Otherwise, there are two Devil Fruit users on this island that kill people," Addy stated. That did not seem to help Usopp nerves at all as he clung even tighter onto Zoro.

"Don't scare me like that," Usopp said from behind Zoro.

Zoro however yawned and wander off the path leaving Usopp standing there. "I'm going to sleep," he said. Laying on the ground beside his swords. He fell asleep immediately. That had to be some kind of talent.

"How can he sleep in a creepy place like this?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah, what kind of nerves does he have?" Nami wondered.

"Some questions are better left unanswered," Addy replied though she was somewhat jealous. She wished she could sleep that easily.

Addy turned around and spotted Luffy crouched down. He was looking at something in the bushes. "Captain?" she asked when she walked towards him. Usopp yelped about something and she turned around only to see him doing this crazy little dance. Ignoring him and Nami she turned back to face Luffy only to see what could only be described as a cross between a poodle and a duck walk in front of her. Okay she must be massively drunk at this point. She only had a couple of shots today. Maybe she should think about taking things easier if she was hallucinating abominations against nature.

Looking back up she could see that they were surrounded by numerous red eyes. Nami backed towards her gripping her arm. The four of them were surrounded. Each of them had their backs turned so they were facing the center.

"What is this?" she asked.

"Wait you can see all this as well?" Addy asked.

"Yeah of course."

"Well that is slightly reassuring." Addy let her hand drop to her whip, ready to use it at a moment's notice.

"Leave," a male voice called from the trees.

"Who's there?" Luffy called out.

"Leave," the voice said again.

"Where is it coming from?" Nami asked.

"I am this island's protective god," the voice said. Addy gripped her whip and snarled, startling Nami. She hated people who pretended to be gods. Caused nothing but grief. The false god saying that however made sure that Usopp stayed quiet. Usopp really needs to get out more. "Leave this island alone at once if you value your lives."

"Protective god?" Luffy asked. Please for everything that is sacred don't let Luffy actually believe this weird guy.

"You guys are pirates aren't you?" the voice spoke. Well that's official. If it was a true god it would know who they were.

"Yeah," Luffy answered.

"Pirates, just as I thought."

"Why would a god ask something like that?" Nami asked.

"They wouldn't unless they weren't a god," Addy answered.

"Listen. Just try to take another step into this forest," the voice said. "The instant you do, will you receive my divine punishment and meet your doom?"

Addy sighed. This guy was a moron.

"How should I know? Why are you asking me?" Luffy responded.

"What's the deal?" Nami asked.

"We are dealing with a crazy guy in the woods. Can we move on?" Addy said.

"This guy seems kinda weird," Luffy said cocking his head towards Nami and Addy.

"What did you say Straw Hat boy?" the voice called.

With that the animals started coming out of the woods, each looking weirder than the next. It's like someone cut up animals and stuck them on randomly.

"What are these things?" Ussop asked. The bizarreness of these creatures shocked him into saying something.

"A very good question," Addy responded staring at what had to be a rhino kangaroo. She knew what the animals were going to be if they got any closer to her nakama. Dead.


	12. Empty Minds, Empty Boxes Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _Due to the updates of the story I decided to upload the next chapter. Please review._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Humans," the voice called out again. Addy was starting to get sick of hearing it. Briefly she wondered how Zoro managed to stay asleep this entire time. "I completely transformed when they came to look for the treasure." Addy hesitated. If the guy did have a Devil Fruit with this power than it could be an actual problem.

"Then you really are a god?" Usopp asked. He got down on one knee and clasped his hands in front of him. The two of them were gonna have a long conversation about false gods.

"No you idiot," Addy said. "He is a guy with a Devil Fruit ability. Granted sometimes it's easy to confuse the two but this is not one of those cases."

"Look at all these weird things," Luffy said. He actually picked up one and held it to his face. It was a pig with a lion's mane. "Is this a lion?" he asked.

"Are you sure it's not a pig," Nami responded.

Suddenly the pig lion thing reached out and bit Luffy face, stretching out his skin. It was immensely unnerving. The pig let go and Luffy dropped it, rubbing his hands over his face.

"What exactly are you?" the voice called out. Okay so not a Devil Fruit user then. He would have known. Which mean that these animals were not actually created artificially. Addy thought that was far more frightening.

"I'm a rubber person. I ate a Devil Fruit," Luffy said stretching out his cheek with a finger.

"Devil Fruit. Don't be absurd," the voice said. "I heard rumors about long ago when I used to be a pirate, but…"

"When you used to be a pirate?" Nami asked. Wow this guy was bad at this. Addy was almost starting to feel sorry for him.

"N-No. I'm not reminiscing about old times at all. No I don't what to hear about old times at all."

"What're you talking about?" Luffy asked. "You're the one who said it."

"Maybe this guy went insane after being trapped here for so long with all these crazy," Addy waved towards a random creature. "things."

"Are you really a god?" Nami asked.

"You really asking that?" Addy said. Nami had the decency to looking sheepish.

"Shut up, If you won't leave, then receive my divine punishment."

As soon as he said that spears came out of the undergrowth heading towards them. Addy barely even have to dodge. Worst aim on the planet. All of them missed Zoro completely and he was on the ground fast asleep. Rocks also started falling from the trees one of them actually managing to hit Luffy. If he wasn't rubber it might have actually hurt him.

"Now you've done it," Luffy said.

"How are you alright ?" the voice asked. Addy could see one of the bushes moving violently.

"Over there," Luffy said. He took a step towards the talking bush.

"I said don't move." Addy heard what sounded like a gun being fired and Luffy taking a bullet stretching out his skin from where it landed. Nami and Usopp screamed and Addy looked in shock. There is no way in hell a bullet was going to take out her captain.

Sure enough when he crouched down he sent the bullet flying into the sky along with his hat. Immunity to bullets. That will be immensely helpful if they fight Marines. And since they were pirates, they were going to fight Marines.

"That's impossible," the bush called out.

"Hey, God." Nami said. "A pistol is useless against him."

"Next time we gain a crew member remind me to tell them that," Addy said. Nami looked at her apologetically. Addy was feeling like she was recovering from a heart attack. She never got a chance to learn Luffy's immunity to fire arms since all the bandits were armed with swords and other weapons. She took a drink out of her flask to calm her nerves.

Luffy got up and dusted off his hat placing it back on his head. "But I don't like being surprised," he said to the bush.

"Mon..Monster," Bush cried out running away and tossing the gun. Luffy and Addy started chasing after him leaving Nami and Usopp behind. The two of them ran until they reached a cliff over looking the ocean. They had climbed a fairly high distance.

"Where did he go?" Luffy asked. Hearing a stick crack, Luffy and Addy turned around to see a large green bush sitting in a chest. They did not go too far since Nami and Usopp managed to catch up rather quickly.

"What is this?" Luffy asked.

"I have no bloody idea," Addy said.

"This is… God?" Usopp asked. Addy slapped him in the head for that remark.

The chest took off again with what looked like to be feet coming out from the bottom.

"It's moving," Nami said.

What the hell is this? Chests cannot move, unless it was The Luggage but that was a different story. Apparently the walking chest cannot see as it ran straight into a tree. They four of them walked towards it slowly not sure of what it would do next. Coincidently the clouds finally moved away from the sun lighting up the area allowing them to see the bush's…. face. Addy knew she had to be beyond drunk right now. This cannot possibly be a thing. Not even in the Grand Line has she run across anything this moronic.

"Just to make sure, that is a face right?" Addy asked.

"Yep," Usopp answered. Nami also nodded.

"Hurry and help me up," the man bush thing said. "Help me up."

"He's human," Nami said.

"You sure about that?" Addy responded.

"Interesting. Is it a bush?" Luffy asked.

"Where does he resemble god? Trying to fool us," Usopp said. Usopp was going to get the smallest fish tonight.

"Shut up. Help me up," man bush said again.

Usopp and Luffy got down and helped the chest up. Addy could see that there were also hands sticking out of the chest.

"I'll forgive you today," man bush said. Addy was growing more and more tempted to throw the guy off the cliff. He tried to run away again but Luffy grabbed onto the chest, his arm stretching as man bush got farther away. However instead of pulling man bush towards them, Luffy was pulled towards man bush sending the two of them flying directly over the cliff. Addy could hear Luffy laughing as he fell down the cliff, the three of them watching him and man bush fall.

Just as Addy was prepared to jump down to rescue them when they fell into the water, Luffy somehow grabbed a branch sticking out of the cliff and launched himself, man bush and the stick up into the air. They landed not too far behind them. Thank the sea Luffy had decent aim; Addy really did not want to go traipsing through the woods looking for them. Luffy landed without a scratch, still laughing about the incident. Man bush was grumbling however and had a rather large bump on his head. Grabbing a bandage from her bag, Nami placed it over the bump.

"Right, that will be fine now," she said. Why they were helping him Addy had no idea. Two of the demented animals were licking his face and Addy had to suppress a shudder. The four of them were all staring at him and in the light Addy was able to get a better look.

Green busy hair and dark skin with a beard that looked like it hadn't been shaved in years. He looked like a guy that had been smashed into a chest and left there.

"Your pretty popular," Nami said.

"Until now you were using them to scare away those who came to the island, right?" Usopp asked.

"But this is the first time I've seen a man who lives in a box," Luffy said.

"You can say that again," Addy said. "Though why you don't get out of it…"

"I can't," box man said. "I have lived in this box for 20 years already, all alone." Yep the guy has clearly gone insane.

"20 years," Nami said.

Usopp got out a pink thermos out of his bag and poured something into the cup and started drinking. How much stuff did he have in that thing? Addy followed, taking a shot out of her flask.

"You've been on this island alone for 20 years?" Ussop asked.

"Look how much my hair and beard have grown," the box man said bowing his head. "Even my eyebrows have joined. And it's been 20 years since I spoken to people." Well that explains his poor social skills. "Do you understand my position?"

"Why idiot?" Nami asked.

"What do you mean idiot?" he yelled.

At that moment Zoro approached yawning. "What the? You all over here?" he asked.

"Yes now take a seat and listen as we sit down and explain to box man why he is the dumbest moron this side of Ocean," Addy said.

"You!" Nami exclaimed. "Even with all the commotion you were able to sleep until now?"

Grabbing Usopp's cup out of his hands Zoro sat down on a rock. After taking a sip, it was only then that he noticed box man in front of him. He fell back off the rock and Addy and Nami and to stifle a chuckle.

"What's with this guy?" Zoro asked.

"Notice sooner," Nami said.

"He is a human who lives in a box," Luffy answered.

"So that is what you were talking about Addy," Zoro said.

"What else would I be talking about?" she asked him. He did not seem to have a response to that taking another sip out of the cup.

Luffy grabbed ahold of box man upper jaw. "Zoro help me out here," he said. Box man was struggling trying to free himself from his grip. Zoro walked up and grabbed what had to be his hair. Together the two of them tried to pull him out of the box.

"Ow, ow what are you doing?" Box man called out. Addy had to admit that on some level this was entertaining. "Stop it, my neck will break."

"It's true, you can't come out," Luffy said wiping off the sweat from his forehead.

"Don't be reckless," box man yelled at him. "After years inside my body has fit inside the treasure box perfectly. If you break the box, my body would be done for too.

"What a chatter box," Zoro said.

Box man sighed. "Who are you guys? There is something completely different about you compared to the pirates that came previously."

"Wait so you have met other pirates?" Addy asked.

"Yes."

"So why did you not ask them to help you out of the box before it became too late?" There was a moment of silence as they all stared at him.

"Anyway, who are you guys?" he asked again.

"I'm Luffy. The man who will be Pirate King."

"Wh- what?" Box man said shocked.

"I'm going to become the Pirate King and get One Piece."

"One Piece you say? You're not really planning to go to the Grand Line are you?"

"We even have a map to the Grand Line." Luffy held it up to show the box man.

"We have a map?" Addy asked.

"We got it off of Buggy," Nami said.

"Okay for the next crew member I am creating a briefing of important stuff that they need to know." Addy could feel a headache approaching and for once not from being hungover.

"Don't underestimate it," Box man said. "That place is hell's coffin. I have seen pirates that escaped from the Grand Line. They were spiritless like the undead. Whether something horrible happened to them or whether they met with terrible monsters, not one person was able to say anything." Luffy leaned forward wanting to catch every word. "Beyond that, there are so many rumors about One Piece that no one knows the truth anymore. The great pirate era has already lasted 20 years. One Piece is no longer a mere legend but a dream within a dream."

There was a pause and Luffy took a look at the map in his hands. In the midst of all this Zoro fell asleep again and Usopp was completely enraptured by what he was saying.

"And where is the Grand Line," box guy asked.

"Who knows. Don't you know Bush?" Luffy asks.

"I don't understand maps at all."

"What the… were the same." The two of them started laughing.

"Nami can you please," Addy asked.

"Certainly. Is this how pirates talk amongst themselves?" She asked standing right in front of them. "Anyway if we get to the Grand Line we will need to get as much as possible and then get away as soon as possible."

"I'm sure we'll find the One Piece. I have good luck," Luffy said.

"Where do you get so much confidence from?"

"I'll definitely find it and show you."

"I give up, Addy you try. You are from the Grand Line."

"I don't think anything I say is going to convince him," Addy said. She looked at her captain who was smiling broadly. Yep she made a good choice.

"You do resemble…" Box man started. Addy wondered where he was going with this. "Your face resembles mine, like a twin."

Nami ran up to him. "Where is the resemblance?"

"I knew it," Box man cried. Perhaps he was having a mental breakdown. "That one day our dreams would come true. We were always that way since the beginning."

"We?" Luffy asked.

"In order to find treasure, losing your life doesn't matter." Finally Box man was starting to make sense. "It was that passion that changed my life." Addy took ahold of her locket.

"Wa-wait, what are you talking about?" Nami asked.

"It was 20 years ago." Oh it was story time. Addy disliked story time. She considered joining Zoro for a nap but figured she might as well listen. Zoro actually got up as he started his tale, which was surprising. Although Addy herself was curious about how he got into the box after all.

It was actually rather simple. Box guy's crew searched for treasure on this island. They found nothing but an empty box. Box man spotted treasure chests up a cliff. He tried to climb up but failed and fell into the box. Crew left him behind because they did not notice he was missing and he has spent the past several years on the island. The one glimpse of treasure never left his mind. Which also explains why he has been using the animals to scare pirates away. It's still a mystery as to why he didn't ask any of them for help but somethings are better left to the ages.

"They are mine," he said finishing the tale.

Luffy nodded "There is no doubt about it. They're yours."

"Gaimon I understand," Nami answered. "I'll help you get those treasures."

"Really?" Gaimon asked. Luffy nodded.

Luffy turned towards Nami, "You're a thief of pirates aren't you?" he asked her. Well that explained a few things. Addy knew next to nothing about most of her nakama. Only exception was Usopp and he wasn't that big of a mystery.

"You," she shouted at Luffy. "That's rude. Even I get emotionally moved."

Gaimon looked like he was about to start crying. Addy didn't exactly care and neither did Zoro but when the Captain said they were going to do something who was she to try and stop him.


	13. Empty Minds, Empty Boxes Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is the end of this arc. It was fun. The next one is going to be All the Gold in the World and should be up soonish. As always please review and let me know what I can improve._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

They all climbed on the back of a giant cow turtle monster and rode up to where the cliff was. Its footsteps echoed across the forest drowning out any other noise. Why does this monster exist? Did the Marines let Vegapunk on this island and this is what he came up with?

The ride was bumpy and uncomfortable. She was essentially smashed against Zoro, and Nami. Luffy was having a fascinating conversation with Gaimon out in front if all the laughing was any indication. Usopp piped in once in a while as well.

"What do you think about this?" Nami whispered in her ear. Because of how close the two of them were together they could essentially have a private conversation. Not that any of the others were paying attention anyway.

"I think we should move on and do something more productive with our lives. Don't get me wrong, I do feel bad for the guy but we cannot go around fixing every minor problem we come across," Addy replied.

"You're going to have problems with Luffy if you have that attitude."

"I am getting that feeling. Besides I guess there are worse things we could be doing."

"Like what…"

Addy paused for a moment, "You know… I'm not sure."

Nami let out a laugh. "You will get used to it. A few 'adventures' from now you will understand. Though Luffy will always be insane."

"Got that right," Zoro whispered to them. So he was paying attention to their conversation. Nami shot him a glare. Hissed something about private conversations before turning back to Addy. She started grilling her about everything she knew about the Grand Line which much wasn't considering she spent most of her time in the New World rather than Paradise but she answered what she could.

Honestly Addy did not know much about the Grand Line. She wasn't in charge of navigation and other than the fact that there seems to be less storms of any kind in East Blue there wasn't much of a difference. Sure the seasons were different as well, but Addy just thought that East Blue had a lot of spring islands. Not that unusual and considering she did not do that much traveling around East Blue. She picked herself up every month and moved after she collected all the money she could from a particular island. It could just have been the luck of the draw.

After what seemed like days but was only a few hours, they reached the cliff where the supposed treasure was at. The all got off the monster with as much grace as possible, which wasn't much but at least none of them fell flat on their faces.

"Here huh?" Luffy asked. The cow-turtle walked off stomping away into the forest. Good riddance. The thing also stank. Addy would jump into the nearest body of water as soon as possible to get the smell off of her.

"I haven't been here in a long time," Gaimon said. Somewhat surprising considering how tiny the island is. How painful was this memory for him? All of them were looking up at the massive cliff. Easily climbable if you had working limbs. "Finally the time has come. Today's a good day. I'm counting on you Straw Hat."

"Okay," he said pulling his arm back. "Gomu, Gomu no…" he grabbed the edge of the cliff with his stretched out hand. "Rocket." Luffy launched himself in the air landing perfectly on the cliff.

He was up there for a little bit of time however, longer than it should have taken him. Usopp and Nami was guessing what the treasure could possibly be, turning it into a game. Zoro was as silent as ever looking up to where Luffy disappeared. Addy figured Luffy was slow but this was getting ridiculous.

"How is it?" Gaimon called up. "Do you see it?" There was no response. Addy wondered what was keeping him. Was there just so much treasure that Luffy was having trouble carrying it all? Was he distracted by a butterfly?

"What is he doing?" Zoro asked.

"I was hoping you would know," Addy answered.

"Luffy," Nami called up.

"Luffy," Usopp repeated.

"Captain," Addy said putting her voice into the mix.

"What's happening?" Nami asked.

It was then that they saw him, on the edge of the cliff a treasure chest in his hands.

"I've got it. Five treasure boxes," Luffy called down. Okay so why did that take so long then. Did he have trouble with the locks or something?

Gaimon started laughing. Finally he was going to see his treasure.

"Can you bring them down? My treasure?" he asked. "Hurry, Hurry."

Luffy grinned and turned his head so that he was facing them, his answer perfectly clear. No.

"What?" Gaimon said in shock. Addy stood there surprised as well. Perhaps she had underestimated Luffy. Maybe he was going to behave like an actual pirate instead of… whatever he normally acted as. Addy was still unsure about that. Nami and Usopp looked shocked as well.

Luffy had his giant grin on his face. "I said no. I don't want to give them to you."

"What nonsense are you saying? Stop joking." Nami said. Wow Nami really had a heart. If it was anyone else, or any other treasure Addy suspected Nami would be telling Luffy to run to the ship, treasure in hand. She seemed to be obsessed with money.

"Yeah those treasures are Gaimon's" Usopp said. "Hand them all over."

Zoro stood impassively his eyes narrowing slightly. Something was up from the way Zoro was acting but Addy had no idea what. Not that it would matter what Luffy decided anyway. Her and Zoro would follow him whatever his decision may be.

"You, stop this nonsense," Nami said.

"It's okay," Gaimon said. "It's okay."

"It's not okay," Nami said turning to face him.

"That's right," Usopp said also turning to face him. "You've guarded that treasure for 20 years."

"Straw Hat you're…" Gaimon hesitated slightly. "You're a really nice guy."

It was then Addy got it. She started laughing. Just her luck that she joins a crew with what had to be the nicest pirate captain on the planet. Hell at this point she would surprised if they ever committed any crimes. They might never even get a bounty poster no matter how powerful Luffy becomes. As long as the Marines didn't arrest any of them of course.

"What do you mean?" Nami asked. "Addy what is going on?"

Tears were streaming down Gaimon face. "I thought of it before. That maybe… Even though it's unbearable to think it." Luffy sat down on the cliff, his hat covering his eyes. "There's nothing inside is there?" Gaimon broke into full out sobbing.

Usopp and Nami looked at him surprised.

"Yeah, there all empty," Luffy called down.

"No way… the treasures you guarded for 20 years are only empty boxes," Nami said. Addy could sense a twinge of sadness in her voice. Despite her brashness Nami was maybe one of the most sympathetic people Addy has met.

"It's something that often happens with treasures," Gaimon said still crying. "Sometimes you reach them after the treasure has been taken. So… searching for treasure is a trial for pirates. Wasting a life time, sacrificing your own life. There are many pirates like that." Most pirates actually. Addy had only met a handful of crews who had managed to break that cycle and she could count them all on both hands. Whitebeards, Shanks to some extent, her mother's when she was still a pirate. There were some others as well but most…. Most ended up trapped. Whether or not the Straw Hats were going to one of those who break free, only time would tell.

Luffy out of the blue started laughing. "Don't be so sad old man," he called down. "Good thing we got here in the 20th year. If no one came in another 30 years you could have wound up dead."

"Straw Hat," he said.

"Luffy," Nami whispered.

"That guy," Usopp said.

Addy smiled. Perhaps this wasn't a bad first adventure at all.

"You just got sidetracked by this," Luffy said. "Now all that's left is the One Piece. Become a pirate with us once more." At that Addy's brain fried. He wants Gaimon to join them? Gaimon. She did not catch anything else, though Gaimon said something about trust and if Addy had a weakness trust was it. Even after… shaking her head she took a long drink. She supposed she could get used to Gaimon, maybe he would be a good storage manager or footstool or something.

Gaimon somehow called the cow turtle thing back and all of them rode it down to the shore. By the time they reached the bottom the sun was starting to set. Addy could see the Going Merry bobbing in the waves.

"Captain, I am going to go get Merry," she said. Luffy waved her off.

"Be careful," Usopp said. "Merry is a precious ship and…"

Addy clapped him on the shoulder. "Don't worry, she is my home too." That seemed to settled him and he grinned at her.

With that Addy stepped into Ocean letting herself walk until the water reached her waist before plunging in to the sea. She glided under the surface feeling the waves flow over her back and reached Merry in record time. Climbing up using the ladder on the side she swung onto the ship.

"I'm back," she said.

" _Good what happened? Anything exciting?"_

"Not much, helped some guy out. He might actually be joining us."

" _Really? I was hoping for more crew. What does he look like? How tall is he? Is he nice? Nobody is hurt are they?"_

"Honestly he is a bit hard to describe. You will see for yourself and nobody got hurt. Don't worry so much. Most of us are competent fighters."

" _Addy,"_

"Yes?"

"What?" Zoro responded climbing up the rope ladder. "I didn't say anything."

"Wait Zoro, what are you doing here?"

"You need someone to lift the anchor," he stated going over to do that. Addy continued to stare at him. That thought did not even cross her mind. There should be an automatic way to lift the anchor.

Once Zoro got it onto the ship, he went into the men's quarters, most likely to change out of his wet clothes. Addy went into the common room, grabbed the steering pole and she started to pilot Merry towards the coast.

" _You like him_ , _"_ Merry said.

"Of course I do, have you seen him?" Addy replied. "He is like a sex demon in human form."

" _He is in the middle of changing now. You could go interrupt him. I won't tell a soul."_

"Tempting as that is, I think not.

" _Why don't you do something?_ "

"Because the last time I acted on lust, I lost everything."

There was a brief silence between the two. " _Y_ our _Soul..."_ Merry said. " _They are not with you are they_."

"No," Addy said. She took one hand off the pole and brought it to her locket. "No she is not."

"Oi," Zoro said once again interrupting the conversation. He changed into another one of his white shirts and black pants. He had a lot of those. "I dropped the anchor. We better meet up with the others." Apparently Addy lined everything up correctly without herself even noticing. Merry's port side was facing the shore.

"Sure," Addy said. Suddenly Merry shifted so that they both stumbled and Addy fell directly into his arms. Both of them were blushing, Zoro more so than Addy.

" _It is more important than ever that you try to build something before you lose yourself in the darkness."_

Addy ignored her even though Merry was right. They would have a long conversation about it later. Zoro let her go; the two of them stared at each for a second. Unsure of how to proceed. Zoro was not usually odd around women, he acted fine with Nami and most of the time with her is well. It's just in moments like these…

"Hey," Zoro said snapping her out of her daze. "Your injuries doing alright?"

"I should be asking you that question. You got more badly beat up than I did."

"It was nothing. All I need is a good nap, some booze, and I will be fine." Somehow Addy doubted that but she would humor him. This would take some time to figure out.

Instead of taking the ladder Addy just jumped onto the shore and walked over to the rest of them with Zoro quickly following her. Somehow Zoro got there first and stood beside Usopp. Addy just caught the conversation between them.

"Are you really going to stay on this island old man?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah Straw Hat," he replied. "Even if there are no treasures, there are other things for me to protect." Please don't say it's the dumb animals.

"I have lived with these guys for 20 years through hard times and happy times." It is the animals. "I can't just leave them." They started licking him again and this time Addy did not hide her disgust though in essence she was happy for him. They were his nakama after all. "Knowing there is no treasure I feel free for the first time. From now on I'd like to live my life the way I want. In reality I've begun to enjoy living in a box." Brain damage can do some crazy things to a person.

"I see. That's too bad because old man is so interesting," Luffy said.

"The strange creatures are your true companions huh," Zoro said.

"Hey, sometimes you don't get to choose your nakama," Addy stated. Usopp and Zoro both smirked at that. Nami frowned however; Addy wished she knew what was going on with her.

"Though old man is the strangest," Luffy said.

"What did you say?" Gaimon yelled.

All of them started laughing, Addy could even here Merry laughing alongside them.

" _This guy is funny,"_ Merry said. " _I wish he was coming with us."_

"We will meet other people," Addy said.

"I certainly hope so. I don't want to be stuck on this island for 20 more years without meeting anyone," Gaimon said. Addy almost faced palmed. 20 years and she still forgets that not everyone can hear the ship. It did not help that Merry was laughing at her.

"Yes right… hopefully new adventures for all of us then."

" _Nice save."_ Merry said. Addy shot a death glare at the ship. This was her life now. Fantastic.

It wasn't much longer until they were all on They all climbed onto Merry and Addy once again took the helm. Everyone else was in the back waving goodbye. Turning the rod, Addy head directly towards the setting sun where new adventures were waiting on the waves. Hopefully one a lot more exciting. Perhaps with actual gold this time.


	14. All the Gold in the World Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is based off the first One Piece movie. A lot of the dialogue comes from a fan translation of the movie so if there are any major error let me know._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

It was interesting what could happen in a short amount of time. It had only been nine days since Addy was recruited and already they were plagued by problems. After meeting Box guy, Luffy ate most of their supplies in two days and now it's been a week since any of them had food. Second and what concerned Addy more is that they have almost run out of alcohol and if it wasn't for her secret stash in her back she would have and third, apparently all fish decided to vacate the area for some unknown reason. They really needed a cook who knew something about moderation. Or could at least prevent Luffy from eating everything in sight. The only good news about the entire situation was it gave them time to heal from the Bandit King. All of them had basically recovered, though Addy still felt twinges of pain every once in awhile.

Addy was standing next to Nami by the figure head, watching Zoro and Luffy lay down on the deck complaining about their circumstances.

"The cloud looks tasty," Luffy said. Addy glanced up and could sort of see his point. It did look a bit like a puffer fish.

"I can't even drool anymore," Zoro said.

Nami was standing by the figure head just watching the ocean. Addy would ask where they are going but she trusted her judgement. She had something on her mind though.

" _Is Nami alright,"_ Merry asked her. Not wanting to look like a crazy person she whispered under her breath.

"Yes, but I am wondering where she is leading us. Not that I don't trust her but I am curious."

" _I don't know exactly. She mentioned something about gold and a man named Woonan but the rest she kept to herself."_ Woonan. That named sounded familiar but Addy could not remember from where and she didn't know how to ask Nami without being suspected of eavesdropping. Which she kinda was but that was details. Nami was so preoccupied that when she broughtup the binoculars she did not even noticed that Luffy jumped up on the railing right in front of her. She yelped in surprise and Addy let out a small chuckle.

"Did you find anything to eat?" he asked her.

She grabbed him and started shaking wildly with an angry look on her face. "Don't scare me like that, Luffy. What on earth were you thinking?"

"I got, got, got, got it, finally got it," Usopp called out. Addy turned towards him to see him yanking hard on the fishing pole. He looked really excited almost like he was doing a little dance. "This pole is really heavy. This has to be the largest elephant tuna in the world!" Addy already knew that was not the case. "Brace yourself, you're gonna eat until your stomach explodes!"

Instead of a fish however Usopp pulled up a glass bottle. "Just kidding," he said trying to cover up his mistake.

At some point Nami put Luffy down and she turned away from Usopp, "I'll never fall for that joke," she said as Ussop started it up again.

"It's here, I got it… its coming!" Usopp said.

"If this goes on for two more days we'll all starve to death," Zoro said.

" _He's not serious is he?_ " Merry asked worry laced in her voice. Addy shook her head. It would take about roughly 30 days and the luckily still had plenty of water. Merry sighed in relief.

"Of all things, who's fault is it that we are all starving?!" Nami asked. She was pacing back and forth angrily. "I worked very hard to store one month's worth of food for this long journey… And who exactly ate it all in three days? Luffy, it was you, wasn't it?!" She stopped in front of Luffy and stared angrily at him.

Luffy equally as angry lifted up his hand and showed two fingers as if he was bragging, "Two days!" he said.

"Don't brag about it! Anyways go catch a bird or a fish or something!"

" _Addy_ ," the Merry said. " _There are some people sneaking up the rope ladder_."

"What? Where?" Addy asked.

" _Behind the cabin_." Addy walked calmly so as to not tip them off. Luffy was yelling about something but Addy was more concerned about finding the intruders. Addy saw out of the corner of her eye the three boys fighting over something? Rice?

"Pathetic… I was an idiot," Nami said. "Why did I ever join these idiots?" Nami was heading in the same direction as the intruders so Addy walked by her side. When they turned the corner they ran into the three of them holding large sacks.

"Oh, hello," one of them said. He had bright pink hair and was wearing a jacked with a white buttoned up shirt and a bow tie. The two guys next to him were in also in ridiculous outfits. Just like them to be robbed by people with no fashion sense.

"That's my treasure," Nami said. "Who are you people?"

The three of them bowed and the pink haired guy continued talking. Apparently he was their leader. "I'm sure you are perfectly aware of who we are. So long." They turned to leave. Addy saw her chance and took it.

Signaling to Nami that she was going to jump on their boat, she did it in one shift motion while the bandits were not paying attentions, hiding behind the sail. When the boys came they would have them cornered on two fronts.

"Everyone come! Thieves!" Nami called out.

"Thieves? Are they bad people?" Luffy asked. Addy face palmed.

"Who knows, those treasures were stolen in the first place," Usopp answered. Yeah they were stolen from bandits, still stealing but from bad people.

"That's true," Zoro said.

"They're bad people!" Nami shouted.

"Then I'll give you these in exchange for the treasure," the purpled haired bandit dressed in green and yellow said. He tossed the guys rice balls and they reacted like they were the greatest things in the world.

"Oh, they are good people!" Luffy said filling his face with riceballs.

"They are not good!" Nami repeated.

The bandits were on their little boat now, and Addy was prepared to jump them when one of them said "All right, let's go, kid." Addy halted for a second. If there was a captive on board that changed things. He might get in the way if Addy started fighting. Addy could feel the boat start to move and took her chance.

She was about to leap down and attack them when Luffy called "Hey! I need some more rice balls…" Addy heard the sound of a bullet and she knew that all Hell was about to break loose.

Jumping out of her hiding spot she quickly grabbed all three bags back and jumped back onto the Merry before the tiny boat could sail too far away. She placed them by the cabin; Nami would put them somewhere safe and walked back towards the rest of the crew. The bandits called out in surprise but Luffy shout drowned them out.

"Hey Nami, they are bad people!" Luffy shouted with Zoro and Ussop staring at him.

"That's what I told you in the first place!" she shouted back.

"Hey, you shot me!" Luffy called back down to the tiny boat. "I was really surprised!"

"I-I'm sure I hit him," the pink haired thief said. Apparently the shock of Luffy still being alive made them forget all about Addy.

"Shoot him, shoot him!" The purple guy called out.

Going for a box they grabbed all the guns they could and started firing them rapidly at Luffy. Most of them missed but a few of them nicked the ship.

" _Ow_ ," Merry called out in pain.

"Captain," Addy yelled. "They are hurting Merry."

As soon as she said that Luffy walked down the stairs and jumped on the railing using his arm to stretch out and grab the small boat. The three bandits stopped shooting and looked at him in surprise.

"Gomu, Gomu no Rocket!" Luffy called out launching himself towards the boat.

"What the…?" the thieves called out. They looked at Luffy in shock as he sailed straight into their cabin where apparently the fourth person was located.

"What," they called out looking like they were about to burst into tears when the mast of the boat fell on top of them with a large crash. Addy felt sad for the poor thing, but that is the way life works. The four of them stood by the railing and watched as the thieves struggled to get up from under the mast, with various grunts and groans being heard. They finally managed when Luffy came out of the wreckage. The thieves backed away from Luffy as far as they could.

"Crap," Luffy said. "I jumped too far." He continued to brush off the leftover debris.

"Wh-What the hell is this guy?" one of the bandits asked. Honestly that was a very good question. Addy was still trying to figure it out. "It's like his body's made of rubber or something."

"Rubber?" Luffy asked. "That's because I'm a rubber man."

"Rubber man?" the black haired bandit wearing a ridiculous pink outfit asked.

"Don't tell me… he's a Devil Fruit user like El Drago?" The pink haired one asked.

"No, of course not. He is just the child of a man who had an extreme love affair with a rubber band. Of course he is a Devil Fruit user!" Addy exclaimed. Usopp, Zoro and Nami all got a chuckle out of that. At this point the ridiculous reactions to Luffy powers were becoming something of a norm. Honestly, she had forgotten how stupid people were about Devil Fruits sometimes. That would change once they reached the Grand Line though even there rubber was a strange power.

"El Drago? Who's that?" Luffy asked. Suddenly there was a groaning from amidst the rubble. The Straw Hats all spotted a black haired boy making the sound. Luffy turned towards him. "What're you doing?"

"Hey Luffy, be careful!" Zoro called out. Turning to see what Zoro was pointing at they saw a ship approaching with a golden lion as the figure head and a large man, about as large as the Bandit King was when he got really angry standing near it. From here Addy could tell that he was dark skinned and had long bright red hair like a lions mane. He was shiny to look at and was holding his hands above his head.

"20 beli says that's El Drago," Addy said.

"Don't be stupid," Nami said. "Only make bets where you can actually make money."

"El Drago," pink haired called.

"That pose, don't tell me…" black haired said.

"He's gonna use his devil powers," purple said finishing blacks sentence.

"Interesting, wonder what his power is gonna be," Addy asked just as the three thieves jumped into the ocean. Whatever it was the three of them certainly feared it.

"What the?" Luffy asked still on the small boat.

"Hey, don't you think the guy on that ship looks strange?" Usopp asked.

"I don't even think he would scratch my top 50 list," Addy replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah, you need to get out more. Once you do he will be near the bottom of your list as well."

"I am sailing on the ocean towards the Grand Line. How much more out can I get?"

Suddenly the man started glowing yellow which Addy hoped was part of his Devil Fruit powers or there was something seriously wrong with him. He let out a high pitched scream and what could only be described as a laser beam of sound emitted from his mouth.

And it was heading straight for the middle between the two ships. The four of them mouths dropped open and various screams of shock and horror were emitted. As the laser passed them it formed waves that battered Merry and the smaller boat. Merry started to tip towards the side and Addy rushed inside to maintain the helm.

Grabbing it with both hands, she carefully maneuvered the ship so that it righted itself. In the back of her mind she felt a slight itch and she knew that the small boat had sunk.

"You okay?" she asked.

" _Yes I am fine. Zoro has Luffy and the rest of you are safely on board._ "

"Good, I figured he would go for Captain."

" _Where are they though? They might be in danger."_

"Captain and Zoro? They will be fine. It's us I am more worried about. We will find them eventually." Addy laughed. "Knowing them they have probably found food and are stuffing themselves."

"Who are you talking too?"Usopp asked. Addy whirled towards him surprised. Giving a small angry kick to the helm.

" _That was uncalled for_."

She answered Usopp, "Merry, I was talking to Merry."

"Ah," he said. "Sometimes I do that as well. It feels like she is actually listening, you know?"

"Completely."

" _You know that you are going to have to tell them eventually._ "

"Addy," Nami said coming into the room with them. "I want you to guide Merry so that it is side by side the massive one."

"Sure," Addy replied. When Luffy or Zoro was not on board Nami was queen. "Why though?"

"I am going to steal their treasure in revenge for them taking ours."

"But Nami… we got ours back."

"Doesn't matter it's the principle of the thing."

Addy and Usopp looked at each other and sighed. After coming up with a signal that would alert them for when they needed to pick up Nami, the quickly moved to the other ship, allowed her to jump off and moved away so that they would not notice anything.

"Steal some food too," Usopp said right before they left her on the ship. She gave thumbs up and climbed up the rope ladder disappearing on the deck of the ship.

"Well it's only the two of us and as you're the newest member that leaves me in charge," Usopp said.

" _We are approaching an island,"_ Merry said.

"Usopp can you check to see if we are near any islands. Best bet that if there is one than that is where that large ship is heading as well," she asked.

"What makes you think that there are any…"

"Just do it."

Usopp scurried off and not even a minute gone by before he called out. "There is an island. How?"

"What does it look like?"

"It looks like an island. There is a giant mountain shaped like a cylinder but that's the only noticeable feature from here."

'Okay' Addy thought she could work with that. Guiding Merry towards the island, she docked her on a rocky shore, essentially beached her since neither her nor Usopp could actually lift the anchor.

"Okay, here is the plan," Usopp said. "We are going to hide on shore as barrels so when the other ship comes we can ambush them."

"That's the dumbest plan I ever heard. Why don't we stay here and ambush them when they try to explore Merry?"

"Because then… they might actually see us."

"You want to hide don't you?"

"Of course I do, did you see the guy. He can emit sound lasers… SOUND LASERS."

"So, what makes you think that hiding on the beach will be any safer than hiding on the ship?"  
"Here they will look through everything, there they will ignore a solitary barrel."

Addy rolled her eyes. "Fine you can hide in a barrel and I will stay here." Usopp carried a barrel and walked towards the shore. Addy wondered if she should bother telling him that the ship was perfectly hidden, but even then he probably would not believe her. Watching him through a pair of binoculars it wasn't long until he was captured. Addy could not make out what he was saying but whatever it was it seemed to have appeased the pirates, or whoever they were and they started walking off.

"Well now I guess it's time to reunite with Nami," she said.

" _Good luck,"_ Merry said. " _Come back safe_."

"I will Merry, I always will."


	15. All the Gold in the World Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _I have enjoyed righting this immensely. I actually like the first movie a lot. It's not the best one but it's certainly not the worst. We will get to that one eventually. Anyway please review and let me know what you like or what I can improve on._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy started walking towards the other ship, it was anchored in the sea but that would not be a problem for her. Walking over the rocks on the other hand. That was a bit of a problem. Eventually she made it to the sandy beach and took one of the three boats that the pirate crew left there. She could see Nami waving her hands at her from the ship.

Nami lowered a rope ladder down for her and she climbed up.

"Any treasure?" Addy asked.

"Some but I will look through more thoroughly later," she said "The Merry safe?"

"She is as safe as she can be with all her crew members not on board."

"Why was Usopp in a barrel?"

"You don't want to know."

Addy looked around the ship, apparently everyone had left. Which Addy said would have been dumb if they weren't doing the exact same thing with Merry. Gazing around she spotted a tiny boat a bit farther up the coast. Going to the edge of the railing she could barely make out Luffy and Zoro and some guy standing over them arguing. It almost looked like they were tied together.

"Is that…" she began to ask but Nami shushed her.

"Ignore them. Those idiots can take care of themselves." Addy shrugged and turned away. "Besides we need to follow Usopp. He is actually in trouble."

It was his own fault but Addy realized that she was right. After delivering the supplies and the treasure they gathered back to Merry, the two of them started following Usopp and his kidnappers which wasn't that hard considering the noise that they were making. It even covered up the sounds that Nami and Addy were making tramping through the woods, of crunching leaves and broken branches.

From what Addy could gather of the conversation, they were looking for Woonan's treasure. Apparently he collected a lot of gold or something and had stored it here and now they were following a map to the treasure. Regular old pirate stuff.

After walking up one of the many hills on the island they spotted a large statue of a whale. It was just sitting here in a field with nothing surrounding it. The pirates were surprised to see it and went on about east and west before pointing to a building and deciding that is where the treasure was. Woonan must not have been that great of a pirate if he chose such an obvious place to hide his treasure. On Addy list of top places to hide buried treasure that would have been near the bottom.

Keeping hidden behind the trees Addy and Nami managed to follow the pirate gang.

"Hurry up a keep walking," pink hair said to Usopp keeping a tight grip on his arm

"I got it already," Usopp responded looking more angry than terrified.

Nami sighed but kept on following them. Addy was starting to wonder if cared more about Usopp or the treasure that they might find.

"I'm pretty sure that gold is somewhere around that castle we just saw," pink hair said. "The problem is where in that castle."

"No problem, this guy knows, right?" black haired said. Oh Usopp, what trouble did you get yourself into?

Now he looked scared though he soon turned angry. "Of course I know, I was close friends with Woonan," he boasted.

"What, with Woonan?"

"That's right! If you dare think of doing anything to me, Woonan's crew won't take it lying down." Addy needed to give Usopp lessons one when to keep his mouth shut. Like right now. At least threaten him with Luffy since is actually on the island. Tied up and being held hostage by someone but at least on the island.

Naturally his kidnappers started laughing at him, which was better than killing him.

"Woonan's crew is no longer a part of this world," El Drago said.

"What? What does that mean?" Usopp asked. It means they killed his crew you idiot. Usopp really did need to get out more.

"It means we took care of them already, with our own hands" pink haired said. Addy figured that Woonan's crew must have been pretty old and weak considering this group looked like they couldn't take care of a bunch of infants.

"What did you say," Usopp asked. They had all stopped walking at this point and Addy and Nami were hiding behind a tree trying not to draw attention to themselves. It gave Addy a closer look at the crew. Most of them were indistinguishable from one another so Addy filed them under her minions category. There was El Drago and another dark skinned, tall guy carrying a large sword and wearing what looked like a poncho.

"The last guy we killed had the map," purple hair said. "The map shows the island where Woonan's gold lies."

"Since they're not her anymore, it's only natural for us to take the gold," pink hair spouted. Well technically they weren't wrong, they were behaving exactly like pirates should. However now Addy wanted to see this gold for herself. Perhaps she could make some nice trinkets with it once she picks up a decent jewelers kit. Heck she wasn't at Nami level but she did like shiny things, though she preferred anything blue or silver to gold.

"It's not us," El Drago said. His crew looked surprised. "The gold is mine!" He held up his hand and Addy could see that his nails were shinning like gold.

"That's right, the gold belongs to El Drago," his crew said to him as if trying to calm him down. "We all know it."

Usopp using some of the brains he does have, tried walking away while all their backs were turned. He was heading towards Nami and Addy but the tall guy in the poncho spotted him.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Trying to escape?" one of the pirates asked him. Do not lead them here, Addy thought.

"No… I need to go to the toilet. Holding it in your bladder's not a good thing to do." Usopp was looking really nervous now. His lies were wearing thin.

"This guy's definitely suspicious," another one of the pirates said. You only figured that out now?

"Do you really know where the gold is?" they questioned Usopp. He was looking more and more nervous by the second.

"Come on, guys, do I look like someone who'd lie? I'm a very trustworthy person." Addy would have started laughing but she did not want to give her position away.

"Really?" pink haired guy asked. They might have found the dumbest pirates in the world. It was fascinating to watch.

"Of course, that goes without saying. I've never told a single lie ever since I was born." Usopp looked like he was planning something. Addy hoped he would do it fast because these pirates would catch on eventually and she did not want to fight these people when the two big guys were with them. At least not until she picked more of the guys off. So far she had managed to sneak up and take out four and they had not even noticed.

"El Drago," one of the scouting party who had gone ahead called. "What should we do? The road ahead is blocked!"

Addy maneuvered herself to see what he was pointing at, careful to not give away her position. It looked like a rockslide had occurred and indeed it blocked the path up towards the castle. The pirates started complaining.

"Don't worry," El Drago said tossing some coins to the big man behind him who was apparently named Gorashi.

He looked excited and told the others to get out of his way. Drawing his large sword that he kept holstered on his back Addy wondered what he was going to do. Apparently it was cut rock slide in half, which created a massive crater in the ground. Addy could hear the rocks break apart, turned into dust with only one sword strike. Nami, her and Usopp all looked shocked.

"That thing was a piece of cake for Gorashi," El Drago said and then the continued walking up the path towards the castle.

For a brief moment Addy wondered what Luffy and Zoro were doing. They were probably hopelessly lost. Which was a shame because they could really use them right now.

They soon made it to the castle. It stood past a standard archway and up a flight of stairs. Maneuvering so that they were in front of the pirates, her and Nami hid in some bushes. If they jumped up right now they would land in front of the arch. Addy could see an opening leading into the inside. The castle proper was three stone towers, each one large then the next standing on a central chamber. Decorated with blue triangles and pink outlines it was an interesting piece of architecture to be sure and that was the highest compliment Addy could give it.

"Okay, where's the gold?" El Drago asked. Now Usopp was really in trouble. "Where…"

"My stomach growls," Usopp cried out going what looked like a crazed dance move. "It growls." Maybe he just broke and no has no idea what he saying. "My stomach goes pa pi pup e po!" Now he was moving like an absolute maniac though it did the job of distracting everyone. Perhaps that was the point. Suddenly he stopped and he turned towards the pirates in the blink of an eye, "That's how it goes."

"What's that?" they all shouted at him. Addy was wondering the exact same thing.

"So you really don't know," pink haired said.

"What should we do?" purple haired asked.

"Kill him," El Drago stated. Now was her cue. Pink hair and purple hair were approach Usopp and he crouched and covered his head. Addy was going to jump out an attack but Nami beat her first.

"Hey, Kamesuke!" she called out. Addy confused, stepped out right beside her. They were standing under the stone archway. Addy tried to look intimidating but that was rather hard when you looked like a bean stalk and your weapon was a whip. Intimidation was not her strong suit. She would kill for Zoro at this moment. "You betrayed me!" Well this was going in a different direction than expected.

"Who are you people?" El Drago asked.

"I am Josephine and this is Alexandra. We are the granddaughters of the Great Gold Pirate, Woonan! Kamesuke, you told them, didn't you? That the gold is hidden under this arch."

"Under this arch?" El Drago asked.

Usopp suddenly got a grin on his face. Addy hoped that these two would not drag it out much further. They were already in over their heads. "Lady Josephine, Lady Alexandra, what should we do now?" Usopp cried out. The pirates were looking surprised. "If you continue to dig and dig for three days straight, you'll find the gold." Did these two forget that they were fighting a guy with sound laser powers? Addy was sure that those three days would take about three seconds for him. "Of course I would never tell you this…" Usopp was genuinely crying. He was really selling it and then he covered his mouth and pretended he said too much. Maybe they could escape out of this after all. Nami looked worried though which isn't a good sign. However once the pirates bought it she looked much happier. Now it was time to make a break for it.

"10 seconds is enough," El Drago said. He lifted his arms up and started glowing yellow again, his minions running away from him as fast as they could. Usopp took off towards them shouting to run. Addy grabbed the two of them and managed to get them out of the way fast enough so that they barely missed the laser coming at them. He continued blasting and Addy suspected that soon there would be nothing but rubble.

"This sound technique… The Scream-Scream Fruit!" Nami said. Well at least she knew what kind of crazy power he had. Only question was how to defeat it.

"So it's a Devil Fruit?" Ussop asked.

"What else would it be?" Addy asked. "The world is crazy, but not that crazy that people are born with the power to shoot sound out of their mouths."

"They say it has the power to transform sound into the power of destruction," Nami said. "The rumors were true."

"Well it's certainly doing that," Addy said looking around at the rubble forming around them.

"At this rate, Woonan's castle will be destroyed," Usopp replied.

"Who was the one that said the gold was under there?" Nami asked.

"It was you." Ussop said.

"Does it really matter right now?" Addy asked. "If we don't do something soon we are going to get blasted apart by sound waves.

El Drago was laughing, "If I blow everything up, the gold will eventually appear."

The noise of the explosions was immense as the rock was being blasted apart. Dust flew into the air getting into everything. Addy could just make out what was in front of her.

Suddenly she heard something even louder than the crumbling rock. Luffy screaming Shut up.

"Shut up lion," he said. As the dust cleared Addy could see he was standing in front of El Drago with Zoro tied to his back. What have those morons been up to? "My ears hurt." Think about how the rest of us feel. Nami, Addy and Usopp watched them, wary of the chaos that might come out.

"Lion?" El Drago said somewhat surprised.

"Sorry, you're actually a cat," Luffy responded.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Me? I'm Luffy. The man who will become the Pirate King." Luffy turned around quickly so that Zoro was now facing El Drago. "This guy is Zoro."

"Yo," Zoro said not taking the situation seriously at all.

"Woonan!" Luffy called out. "You there? Answer if you are there."

"What are you talking about," El Drago laughed. "That guy died a long time ago."

"You don't know that until you see him. Even if there is one person that thinks he is alive then he may still be alive."

"What kind of nonsense are you babbling about?"

"Hey why are they chained together like that?" Usopp asked.

"You just noticed?" Addy stated. "We should probably always have one of us keep an eye on them so they don't do anything too monumentally insane. "

"Way easier said than done," Nami said.

Out of nowhere a boy came running up and knocked Luffy and Zoro over. "Move aside," he said. Addy had officially lost track of what was going on. Who was this kid? He looked like the child from the boat earlier. "Woonan's gold. I will protect it." He was holding a stick directly in front of him as some sort of weapon though his legs were trembling. Addy had to give the boy some credit, he was brave at least. Though usually when you combined bravery with stupidity you should not expect to have a very long life span.

"Hey, hey," El Drago muttered.

"On this island lies the precious gold which Woonan risked his life to get. I won't let evil men like you do as you please. Leave this island at once."

El Drago looked at the buy for a second before picking up the stick between two fingers and lifting the boy up in the air as well.

"Do you want to die that badly?" El Drago asked before throwing the boy up into the air. Addy could see El Drago throw his arm up in an attempt to slash at the boy. Addy moved, whip in hand but Zoro beat her there. Addy heard the clash of metal against metal so she wrapped the whip around the boy so that it pulled him towards her. He landed safely in her arms.

"Who are you?" he asked. He started to struggle so she put him down.

"One of the people who just saved your life," Addy said. "You should be grateful."

She turned back to the battle. Zoro was now facing El Drago with one sword in his mouth. Luffy was useless tied up and so was Zoro to some extent. Addy moved towards them ready to attack if necessary.

El Drago tried to punch them but they jumped out of the way to where Addy and the boy were standing.

"Don't fight here," Addy yelled at them.

"Sorry," Luffy said. Right as El Drago tried to attack them again though Luffy and Zoro dodged and were now under a nearby stone bridge.

The fight was about as pointless as it could get. El Drago could not hit the two of them but Zoro could not hit him either.

"What's wrong?" El Drago asked mocking them. He started laughing at them.

Zoro was saying something but she could not quite catch it. It's an issue when you wield a sword in your mouth. He tried to attack El Drago but Luffy foot was stuck on the cliff for some reason, Addy couldn't exactly make it out.

"Oh no," she said. Suddenly Luffy and Zoro were launched into the cliff at an amazing velocity which also happened to pick up her and the boy as well. They were flying in the air at rapid speed. Damn Luffy and his stupid powers. Addy could not see or hear anything, the roar of Wind blocked out everything, including hopefully her own screams. She felt herself hit something and was sent flying into another direction. Pain laced up the side which got smashed. That would leave a nasty bruise. Hopefully nothing was broken.

Addy became less worried about the injury and more about the ground that she was quickly approaching. Using what momentum she could she managed to flip herself around so that she landed on her legs in a crouched position. She felt the impact throughout her bones but at least nothing was broken. She hoped. Looking around she saw that Luffy, Zoro and the boy were not too far away. Thankfully Luffy took the brunt of the fall. Addy was not sure how the kid was doing.


	16. All the Gold in the World Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Walking towards them Addy could tell they were in pain. She placed her hands on Zoro and he didn't reject the contact, though that was mostly likely because he was trying to hide how much pain he was in.

"You two alright?" she asked. Zoro grumbled which she assumed was a yes and Luffy was smooshed into the ground so he couldn't exactly talk. Addy looked up and saw that they boy managed to get up onto his knees. That was a good sign.

"Luffy," Usopp called. "Zoro." Addy turned and saw the two of them running up the hill. Addy only then looked around her surroundings and saw that they were right by the whale again.

"What, what on earth happened," the boy asked. Good he was talking.

"For crying out loud, what a bother," Nami said. She looked at Addy. "You alright?"

"Considering that I almost became a part of this hill, yeah I am fine," she responded.

Nami leaned down and started working on the lock around the chains. Usopp was taking care of the boy. Right now all Addy wanted to do was take a nice long nap, preferably in gold at this moment.

Once Nami got the chains off of them Zoro got up.

"We're saved," he mumbled stretching out his limbs.

Luffy sat up as well and faced Nami, "Hey, Nami," he asked. "Can I borrow some money?"

"Why?" she asked back. Addy wondered if they had any money that wasn't treasure. They were going to have to convert it into Beli soon.

"They didn't pay it," the boy said now sitting up.

"What?" Addy asked. Her and Nami turned to face the boy, she should really learn his name.

"Why don't you just pretend not to remember?" the boy said. "It's just oden." Oh so that is what happened. Luffy and Zoro probably cleared out an entire oden store, couldn't pay and ended up being tied up.

"Who's the boy?" Nami asked.

"Tobio," Luffy answered. Well at least she had a name now. Addy watched as the boy ran across the field.

She glanced towards Usopp. "How did you find us?"

"Well due to my amazing tracker skills developed after years of training we…"

"You saw us crash into the hill didn't you?"

"….yeah."

All of them walked over to the boy who was staring at what used to be a castle. It was completely destroyed, nothing more than rubble at this point.

"I guess the gold is under all that rubble," Usopp said. Addy nodded in agreement. Shame really, they could have used it. You can never have enough treasure.

"What?" Tobio asked. "Are you after the gold too?"

"No, that's not what I mean." Usopp held his hands up defensively. That would have been the saddest fight in the world. "The gold belongs to Woonan. If he's still alive."

"He is still alive."

"The gold isn't there," Nami said. "Neither is Woonan."

Addy turned to face her curiosity on her face. Of course Woonan wasn't there but the gold…

"How do you know?" Zoro asked. The question was on the tip of Addy tongue as well.

"Can't you tell? That castle doesn't have a trace of anyone living there." Nami unfolded what seemed to be a map. "It was a decoy." She didn't… "Woonan probably somewhere else."

"When did you get that?" Addy asked her pointing towards the map.

"That's the treasure map," Usopp said looking excited.

"Treasure map?" Zoro asked.

"Oh yeah, this island apparently has a massive stockpile of gold or something," Addy told him. He hummed in acknowledgement.

Nami laid the map on the ground so that they could all take a good look at it. "Right, this is the legendary map left behind by one of Woonan companions. I pickpocketed it while we were traveling through the woods." Addy whistled, that took some skill. Nami beamed at her before grabbing a matchbox out of her bag and lite up one of the matches, the fire flickering slightly.

"What are you doing?" Ussop asked.

"Just watch," she replied. "If my instincts are right, then there must be…

"Scorching?" Zoro asked.

"That's right," Nami said. "It's a pretty simple trick. Look, something is showing up." All of them drew even closer to the map, excited for what it was about to reveal.

"Th…this is…" Ussop stuttered.

However all of their excitement vanished when the map burst into flames and immediately turned into ash. Well that was a bit of a problem. All of them stood there with their mouths dropped.

"Nami!" Luffy, Zoro and Usopp yelled at her simultaneously. Addy just shook her head. Honestly they should have expected this. They did just light an old piece of paper on fire after all.

Nami got up a walked towards the edge of the cliff, raising her arm in the air her fist clenched. "Now, let's head for the Grand Line," she shouted.

"Don't change the subject," Usopp yelled back. He seemed to collapse in on himself, either out of exhaustion or disappointment. "What are we going to do without a map?"

"The only clue about Woonan is gone," Zoro said.

"Well. Was there something written on that map?" Luffy asked.

"Umm… I think it said," Usopp muttered walking towards the whale. So there was some hope after all. "The treasure sleeps, look south of the hill. If the whale faces west, the tail points to the east."

"Eh really?" Nami asked.

"Woonan castle is too the east," Usopp said disappointment laced in his voice.

"Okay but the tail isn't," Addy said.

They all took a look at the whale and sure enough the tail was turned so it was pointing in a different direction.

"AHHHH, it's not pointing to the east," Ussop shouted. "That means the end of it is…" They all ran over to see where the whale's tail was point. A tall cylinder of rock next to a pointed spire stood directly in their view. Each of them looked surprised. "That.." Ussop said his voice trailing.

"Oh this is going to be fun," Addy said. They made their way down the hill and through the forest trying to get to the mountain as quickly as possible. Last thing any of them wanted was to be stuck here after dark.

They were actually making a good pace despite Tobio also coming along. At some point in order to hurry things along Luffy picked him up and was carrying him.

"Captain," she said. Luffy turned to look at her. Right now it was her in front with him. Zoro was in the back making sure that Nami and Usopp kept up.

"Addy everything going to be fine," he said. "You worry too much." He patted her head to comfort her.

"Right… well that puts all my worries at easy." Funny enough it did, Addy was feeling lighter like something was lifted off of her. "You're really good with kids."

Luffy let out a laugh. "Kids are easy."

"For you maybe." Perhaps it was because of his child like nature. Or maybe it was his magic ability to make everyone like him. It certainly worked on her.

"What your dream?"

"What?" she asked surprised by the question.

"Dream? You know…"

"Yes I know what a dream is, it's just…" Addy had not thought about it in a long time. That fell along the wayside with everything else.

"I don't…. I think we are here."

"Woah." Woah indeed. The both looked up at the massive stone pillar in front of them. Addy could barely make out a trail heading up but it would be tough going. When the others caught up they also stood in shock and amazement.

"We should probably pair up if we are going to make it to the top," Addy said.

"What's your idea?" Luffy asked. The others were looking at her for guidance as well.

"Luffy you should probably take Tobio and go out in front. If he falls than your most likely to catch him and if you fall you're also the only one who could probably survive. Usopp and I…" She saw a flash of what looked like disappointment on Zoro face but in a second it was gone. "Usopp and I should be next and then finally Zoro and Nami. Sound good Captain?"

He gave her a smile and nodded. It was easy start at first but the higher they got up the more Wind buffeted them. Addy could feel the coldness of Wind seep into her. Ice and snow she could handle but this was something else. All of them were basically clinging to the walls of the cliff, standing on what little room they had. How Woonan got gold up here was beyond her. Right now they could barely get themselves up.

"Don't get blown away," Usopp called out after another rather vicious blast of Wind started up.

"If we climb up this cliff, we'll definitely see Woonan's…" Tobio said the rest of the sentence lost in Wind. Addy saw out of the glance in her eye that Zoro helped Nami up the cliff, that worried her for a second but everything seemed fine.

Suddenly Tobio slipped when reaching out. Luffy was already on the other side but Addy managed to catch him.

"Be careful," she said holding him in her arms.

"I guess it's too hard for the kid," Zoro said. Addy did not want to admit that he was right. The kid was fighting his hardest.

"No it isn't," Tobio said. "If I quit now. I won't become Woonan crewman!"

He started struggling and Addy gripped him tighter. "Don't do that or we will both fall."

"Hey, I found a good place for us to rest," Luffy called out. Thank Ocean. Addy placed Tobio down and they continued walking to the shelter Luffy found. It was a cave carved into the side of the cliff. Large enough for all of them to fit. What was strange however was that an old man was already in there.

"Grandpa?" Tobio said. Well that brought up more questions than answers. Like how in the world an old man managed to make it.

"Why are you guys here?" Grandpa asked.

"We should be asking you that." Addy said making her way into the cave giving the others enough room to maneuver. "But to answer your question we found or more accurately stole this treasure map…"

"I see, the treasure map…" At this point everyone was settled into the cave though it was a tight fit. Wind died down as Addy could hear the sea gulls outside.

"What are you doing here old man?" Luffy asked.

"Burying treasure at the highest place has always been his way of doing things…" Grandpa said. "On this island, this is the only place he would do it."

"Grandpa?" Tobio said his eyes wide. "You knew Woonan?"

"Have you met him before?" Nami asked.

"He and I were like brothers," Grandpa started. Oh no, not story time anything but story time. Addy cared slightly more than she did about Gaimon but that did not mean she needed to know this man's backstory. "grew up in the same village." As Addy resigned herself to her fate she leaned back. Expecting to hit her head on the rock wall she was surprised to hit something softer. Addy looked up and saw Zoro looking down at her. She was leaning against his legs. Smiling in thanks she turned to face Grandpa. She felt him place his hands on her shoulders and she moved in closer, grateful for the warmth.

There were an attentive audience, making all the right sounds at the right times. Addy was actually getting sort of invested. The conflicting dreams, the fight, falling off the cliff.

"And… did you die?" Luffy asked. Perhaps too invested.

"He still alive you idiot," Usopp said.

"By chance a ship passed nearby at that time," Grandpa continued. "It was the first miracle in the village."

"What, you didn't die," Luffy said sounding almost disappointed.

"NO SHIT," they all yelled at him. Luffy could be really dumb sometimes.

"When I woke up three days after the incident, Woonan had already left the village. And after that we never saw each other again," Grandpa finished.

"I didn't know that," Tobio said. "Grandpa knew…"

"The Woonan I remember started changing from that time. That stubborn, obstinate man who wouldn't try my oden. But now I think he would definitely eat it. This pot of oden which I put my life into." Addy looked and saw a black pot tied to his head with a red ribbon. So that is why he is up here, just in case Woonan is alive. It was all rather sad.

"A pot of oden which you've put your life into," Luffy said.

"Now, let's not waste our time being here," Grandpa said. "Or the oden will get cold." Addy thought it was slightly too late for that, but if Woonan was alive they would figure out some way to warm it up.

"Okay, let's go."

The rest of the got up and followed Luffy. It wasn't much farther until they reached the top. An old torn up stone shack met them with what used to be a silo. It looked like it had been in disrepair for years. Still they hurried up, each of them curious as to what could be inside. Luffy got there first and opened the wooden door. It squeaked open revealing…

"Nothing here," Luffy said. Addy felt the waves of disappointment through her.

"No way," Nami said running through a door way with no door. "There is nothing here either."

"Did Woonan really live here?" Tobio asked.

"There aren't any chairs or tables," Zoro said.

"There isn't much of anything," Addy said. All she could hear besides their voices was Wind echoing through the empty chambers.

"There is only a common fireplace," Zoro pointed out.

"A nicely decorated fireplace," Addy stated walking towards it along with Zoro. It was surround by green marble with vines etched in. It was massive, much too large to be necessary. When Zoro got to it, he pushed it with one hand and it slide across the floor with ease. "Impressive."

Zoro grinned at her and rubbed the back of his head. "It was nothing."

"For you please, it was less than nothing." Was she actually flirting with him? What was wrong with her? She should probably stop listening to Merry's advice about relationships. She was a ship after all. And was he flirting back?

"That's amazing, how did you find that?" Luffy asked his mouth wide. Usopp was standing there equally shocked.

"Any idiot should be able to find this," Zoro yelled at them.

"Hey look, you can go down from there," Usopp pointed out. Sure enough there was a set of stairs leading down into who knows where.

"Woonan should be down there," Tobio said.

"Along with his mountain of gold," Usopp added in.


	17. All the Gold in the World Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _Sorry this is late. I have been super busy with school and junk. This is the last chapter of this arc, I sort of forgot how long this is. This might be my longest chapter yet. I both love it and hate it at the same time. As always please review and let me know what I can improve._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

All of them started making their way towards the stairs. Suddenly Zoro shouted duck and Addy collapsed on the ground faster than a blink. She unfurled her whip and looked around. Everything was falling apart, the building was collapsing right in front of her. The sound was deafening and the dust got into her eyes. She started hacking, the dust filling her lungs as well. As she opened her eyes she found herself covered in debris. It wasn't too hard to get out of, thankfully. She could hear the others and glanced around trying to make anything out through the dust cloud. Zoro and Luffy made it out as did Nami. Tobio and his grandfather were hidden behind a plank of wood and standing before him was the last person Addy wanted to see.

"What is he doing here?" she coughed. "I thought we lost them."

"Looks like we didn't," Zoro said.

"This is bad." El Drago with one swipe of his hands sent the Grandfather flying, his oden pot falling to the ground. Addy growled. You don't mess with someone's dreams. Grandfather was slowing crawling towards it, trying to save what he could only to see the pot kicked in front of him and El Drago smashing what was left of the oden into the ground. Brushing off herself and taking out her whip she marched towards him.

Luffy beat her to it sending El Drago back with a punch. Her, Nami and Zoro stood behind him ready to lend support if necessary which she doubted he would need. She watched as Luffy walked to the destroyed oden, he kneeled down and lifted it up to his mouth. Despite the fact that it was covered in dirt he ate every single bite that he could. Nami and Usopp had these shocked looks on their faces but Zoro. Zoro had this knowing smile. Had this sort of thing happened before?

"Delicious," Luffy called out. "It's no doubt that old man's oden is the best in the world." Luffy looked up and Addy got these dark vibes from him, similar to what she felt when he was facing the Bandit King though not as intense. "I will not forgive you for this."

"What are you babbling about?" El Drago asked. "Take care of them, Gorashi."

The big swordsman came out of nowhere to launch his attack but Zoro caught his blade in between his. At some point he put on his bandanna. This fight was serious.

"Zoro," Luffy called out.

"It looks like I'm his opponent," Zoro responded. The two of them held there blades in position. Neither of them budging until Zoro pushed his opponents back. The sound of metal echoed.

"Hey… that three swords man is…" one of the minions said. "Zoro."

Addy looked at them anger glittering in her eyes, "Captain you would not mind if I…"

"Go," he said and that was all she needed. Right now she was in kill mode. Before they could even understand what was going on Addy was in the middle of their group. All in all she counted 15 guys.

"Fun," she said before launching her attack. Her whip cracked in the air sending a shockwave of noise. Guys started falling down out of nowhere, their bodies being torn to shreds. A few of the stupid ones tried to grab the whip but only ended up grasping air. Addy started swinging her whip in the air above her head.

"Lautan pusaran air." She moved the whip in front of her moving it in a circle at rapid speed, like the blades of a windmill. The guy in front of her was instantly shredded. Addy herself then started spinning in a circle making sure to hit every guy. They were launched backwards, with deep gashes. None of them would be getting up anytime soon. Addy stilled herself and the whip surveying the damage. Everyone was on the ground, bleeding profusely. Blood drops littered the ground mixing with the dust to form a bright copper color. Some of the minions were trying to crawl away though a couple of lashes prevented that from happening. Once that was all over Addy curled her whip back up.

Looking back the others she saw the massive swordsman on the ground. Zoro had apparently finished his fight. He shot her a grin, though she his eyes go slightly wide at all the damage she created. She walked back towards the group standing beside Zoro.

"Feeling better," he asked.

"Much," she replied.

"Wow, you guys are amazingly strong," Tobio said.

"It's not over yet. It's too soon to be surprised," Nami said. They all turned to face Luffy who was battle ready.

"Now's it's your turn," Luffy said to El Drago. This was going to be good.

"Bastard now you really angered me," El Drago replied. He started glowing yellow and the rest of them took cover while Luffy stood his ground. It would do no good to get caught in the blast. Zoro and Addy ducked behind what remained of the shack. The peaked over the remains to watch the fight.

The blast hit Luffy directly though it did not even seem to scratch him. Instead he used it to his advantage allowing it to stretch him while he kept his hand on a rock. "Gomu, Gomu no Rocket." He sent himself flying straight for El Drago breaking through rocks like it was nothing. He smashed El Drago into a massive boulder causing it to crack.

"You… stop screwing around," El Drago sputtered. He broke the rest of the rock apart and except for a few cuts remained mostly unscathed. He let out another blast but Luffy dodge it and retaliated.

"Gomu, Gomu no pistol!" Luffy smashed El Drago right in the face. When the dust cleared however Addy could barely contain a gasp. Luffy fist was stuck between El Drago teeth and he was biting down. Hard.

"That hurts let go!" Luffy screamed out. Using his advantage El Drago grabbed onto Luffy arm with both hands and pulled himself towards Luffy. "Hey what are you doing?"

There was a large smash that sent rocks and dirt flying into the air. The bastard was copying Luffy technique. He tried to land another punch on Luffy but he dodge effortlessly out of the way. Each punch he sent towards Luffy he managed to dodge. He managed to get a lucky shot in and clipped Luffy on the side with his golden claws ripping up his shirt.

"This is bad, a rubber man will be finished if he gets cut in half," Usopp said. He wasn't wrong but Addy highly doubted that this guy could do that to Luffy.

Sure enough a mistake was made. Luffy tripped over a rock making him land on his backside. As El Drago went for the killing blow Luffy started twisting his body wrapping his legs around El Drago neck and lifting him up in the air. It was like Luffy turned him into a top. El Drago was spinning so rapidly. Her whip might have been slightly faster but not by much. Suddenly Luffy let him go and he was sent flying into the air.

In a last ditch effort he sent a sound blast towards Luffy who was just putting his hat back on. Addy couldn't tell what was happening. Debris was flying everywhere. Bringing up an arm to shield her eyes she could just make out Zoro screaming Luffy. Zoro grabbed onto her and brought her so that she was facing his chest. Taking a deep breath she placed her face against his torso, protecting herself from the debris.

He smelled like steel which Addy thought was fitting. For some reason she thought it was soothing. The moment was soon broken however as the debris settled. Addy pulled herself away and looked at Zoro who was an interesting shade of red. With the bandana still on it looked rather comical. She couldn't deny it any longer. He liked her. Only question is what to do about it.

"Thank you," she said before turning back to watch Luffy fight. Luffy had embraced El Drago, his arms and legs wrapped around him.

"Gomu, Gomu no…" he started to stretch his head back. All the way that he could. "Kane!" He head-butted El Drago right in the forehead sending him toppling to the ground. Luffy took some deep breaths. Addy could tell he was getting tired.

Suddenly El Drago got back up and started to try to punch Luffy again.

"Die you bastard!" El Drago said trying to claw Luffy while he was on the ground.

Luffy placed his feet together and launched them like a spear towards El Drago head. Addy could hear the crunch as it made contact. "Gomu Gomu no, Gating Gun!" Luffy made it appear as if he had dozens of fists, each landing a blow on El Drago. He was being pushed back, the force of Luffy punches being too much.

Luffy ceased his attack and jumped into the air. "Gomu, Gomu no Muchi!" Pulling one leg back he smashed it into El Drago breaking off all his precious gold armor.

"The gold belongs to me!" El Drago cried out. He started glowing yellow again preparing to let loose an all-out assault.

Luffy started sucking in air as quickly as he could until he was about as big as El Drago. When El Drago let loose his attack it caught Luffy in the chest but not before Luffy wrapped his arms and legs around El Drago. Luffy was using his body to catch the blast.

Even after El Drago finished his attack Luffy had the blast contained. She could see Zoro grinning out of the corner of her eye. Addy let out a smile as well enjoying the sound of El Drago screams. Luffy let him go and launched his own blast back at him. There was no recovering from this. The blast took off half of the mountain they were on.

El Drago was defeated but not unconscious. This apparently was not enough for Luffy. Jumping up in the air and stretching his arms back, he prepared for his final attack. "Gomu Gomu no Bazooka!" He smashed both his hands into El Drago sending him flying into the air and probably into the sea.

"Well that was entertaining," Addy said.

Luffy was smiling brightly. Tobio ran up to him and gave his Straw Hat back. They should really get a tie for that thing so that he could keep it on him as he fights. Addy could not quite catch what Luffy was saying but decided it wasn't that important.

"You guys alright?" she called out to Nami and Usopp.

"We're good," Nami replied.

Together the four of them walked towards their Captain. She could hear Luffy laughing his smile as bright as the sun. When he finished, he turned his head towards the stair case. It was time.

Walking down they took each step carefully. It was almost pitch black except for the lantern Nami was carrying.

"I finally get to meet Woonan," Tobio spoke breaking the silence. The kid was definitely excited. Addy suspected that if he were able to, he would be jumping up and down. He was leading the pack with Nami right behind him with the lantern. Addy hoped that they would reach the bottom soon. Her claustrophobia was acting up. It felt like everything was about to close in around her. Taking a swig to calm her nerves Addy felt better. She glanced behind her to see how Usopp and Zoro were doing. She could barely make them out in the darkness.

"It's here," Nami whispered. The atmosphere of the place called for silence. Right in front of them was a worn down wooden door. Addy was surprised it was still standing.

"Behind this door….is Woonan," Luffy spoke. Everyone nodded. Addy was shivering hopefully in anticipation.

"I'm opening it," Nami spoke. As she pulled open the door it creaked loudly echoing.

Addy let out the breath she didn't realize she was holding in. When Nami stepped and lite up the room, Addy could not hold back her surprise. Along the back wall, in the center sat what had to be the corpse of Woonan decorated in the regalia of a pirate captain.

"This… this is," Usopp spoke. It diffused some of the tension.

Tobio ran up and Addy could barely make out tears, "No way! This can't be Woonan," he cried out. "It's a fake. Woonan must be somewhere else."

His grandpa walked up and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. There was little else he could do.

"Whoa, what the hell is this?" Usopp called out pointing at something. Startled by the noise Addy swerved in his direction. Nami shined the light at what Usopp was looking at. Writing, there was a ton of writing on the wall.

"No doubt about it, Woonan's handwriting," Grandpa spoke. A farewell perhaps? Addy stepped closer to try and read it.

"To the people who came here for the gold," Addy spoke. "My name is Woonan. Formerly the man called the 'Great Gold Pirate.'"

"Formerly what does he mean by that," Usopp spoke.

"I don't know," Addy said. "If I had to guess it has something to do with the fact that there is no gold here." The room was completely empty save for the skeleton. Not even a speck of gold dust could be found. Addy picked up where she left off. "But now I'm just a man waiting to die. All the gold I've gathered has been returned to its rightful owners... what really? Why would you ever do that?" Nami let out a yelp at that as well.

"This was a battle to fulfill my childhood dream," Usopp started it up again. Addy thought she could almost hear Woonan voice as Usopp spoke. "To build a mountain of gold for which no one has ever seen. But as I sit before it, the words that were once said to me by a man come to my mind. 'Gold can't laugh, it's just a rock.' It's true. The thing I devoted my entire life upon it was not gold. It was the adventure to find the gold." As Usopp finished Addy felt something stir within her. A memory thought forgotten.

'We're going to go on the greatest adventure in the world Addy. We will find the right captain and sail to the end of the Grand Line. I promise. The two of us will make sure of it. After all dreams are only as important as the journey you take to accomplish them.' Addy took out the locket from under her clothes and grasped it tightly. Why now… why must she remember this now? Taking out her flask she drained it and hoping to blot the memory out of her brain. It failed, it was still clear despite being tipsy.

"There's no gold here," Zoro said though Addy could swear it was the voice of Woonan talking. Zoro placed a hand on her shoulder. Perhaps he noticed what she was going though. She felt another hand on her other shoulder. She turned a saw her Captain looking at her worry tinging his bright eyes. Though she smiled and that seem to cheer him up. He smiled back at her. "But instead a treasure that's even more valuable. To others, this might be worth nothing. To me this is plenty enough. Please do not destroy this place. This is the place where my most precious treasure sleeps."

All of them turned towards the skeleton, curious as to what Woonan was talking about though Zoro kept his hand on her shoulder. Grandpa was already there lifting something off. As he removed his hands to let the others see Addy could not help but smile. It was the pirate flag from the story. He kept that thing as a token, his greatest treasure.

"My goodness what a great man your grandpa is," Usopp said clapping Tobio on the shoulders. "He is the only person which the legendary pirate trusted."

"One is a great pirate," Zoro spoke. "One sells oden. But the pride they both had was equal." Addy noticed Zoro cast a glance towards Luffy who had remained silent through this entire thing. Perhaps there was more to her captain than she thought.

"Grandpa," Tobio said. "I…I…" he ran up to his grandfather. "Sorry!" He was crying.

"Tobio," Grandpa said back. Addy thought she was invading a private moment. "Live the way you want to live. I'll always protect you."

The Straw Hats were all smiling at the two of them. Luffy the brightest of them all.

"Not to interrupt or anything but how are we going to get out?" Nami asked. "I am not sure we want to walk back all the way down the mountain."

"Gold… elevator," Addy said. Her mind was a bit of a blur.

"Gold…. Addy you're a genius."

"What?" Luffy asked.

"Think about it. At some point Woonan kept all his gold here. He would certainly not walk it all the way up here piece by piece. He must have had some way of transporting it all," Nami said.

"But how are we going to find it," Usopp replied. He leaned back against the wall. There was a loud click and the wall slide away causing Usopp to fall backwards inside what appeared to be a metal box.

"Woo, way to go Usopp," Luffy said marching into the elevator. Grandpa carried Tobio in still wanting to hold him close. The rest of them getting in as well. There was actually a lot of space, even more than there was in the cave. Addy heard the click of a button being pressed and down they went.

It only took a minute to reach the bottom. Luffy was laughing the entire time in joy. At least she think he was laughing, there were also screams as they plummeted down. They must have walked pretty deep into the mountain or the elevator was going at the speed of light. Addy was unsure of which. The sunlight was blinding when they got out. Addy shielded her eyes from the light. Somehow the exit ended up being right where the Merry was still on the shore though the tide came in and it was nestled nicely in the water.

The Straw Hats stood on the beach, unsure of what to say. Grandpa invited them over to his ship for oden. After several days without food Addy was pretty sure that she would eat vegetables at this point. Lucky he had plenty of fish so she was fine. After they eaten all that they could Nami paid for the meal, which turned out to be ridiculously cheap. Seriously how this guy made any money was beyond Addy. Together they walked back towards the beach except for Nami who went to El Drago ship.

"You guys leaving already?" Grandpa asked.

"Yeah," Luffy said. "What will you guys do?"

"After we build a grave for Woonan, I will continue my oden shop."

"So, do you still want to be a pirate?" Usopp asked Tobio. "Or…"

"Sell oden," Zoro finished.

Tobio looked at them wide eyed before breaking into a smile. "I'll think about it when I leave home again. If I live life seriously like my grandpa I'm sure one day I will find the answer. Right?"

Usopp laughed, "Right."

Addy saw Nami walking up to them with a huge bag stuffed to the brim with what looked like treasure. Did they really miss that much? They were in a hurry because of Usopp but still. She placed it directly in front of them, wiping off the sweat that collected on her forehead.

"El Drago treasure, what left of it," Nami said. "Addy and I took the rest earlier."

"You never change do you?" Zoro asked her.

"That's right," Nami said. Picking up a couple of gold coins. Right they still had to pay for when Zoro and Luffy ate earlier. "Here is the money for what those two ate. It's a loan."

"A loan?" Zoro yelled.

"Of course, I expect three times the return." Addy laughed. Oh they are never going to be able to pay it back.

"Why you…"

"No I can't accept the money now," Grandpa said. Addy looked at him surprised. "I've talked to Tobio about it, and you will owe us the money. Without interest."

Nami glared at Tobio but he just smiled. "This is so that we will be able to meet again."

Luffy burst into a wide grin at that. He seemed to collect friends like other people collect trading cards, or seashells. The rest of the Straw Hats were smiling as well and Addy was actually looking forward to meeting these two in the future.

"Now, what are you guys still doing here?" Grandpa asked. "Sail off while the weather is good. You eat and run comrades. "

While the others unfurled the sail Addy directed them away from shore while the others waved goodbye.

" _Good adventure_?" Merry asked.

"I think so," Addy said.

" _You must tell me everything. Don't leave anything out._ "

"Alright I will," Addy laughed going out to join the rest of her nakama. The current they were on would take them where they wanted to go.

" _You doing okay, you seem sad."_

"I am… I just remembered." Addy was silent for a moment before continuing to walk towards her nakama. Addy watched with them as the island faded into the distance.

" _Why are you sad about remembering?_ "

"It's painful," she whispered under her breath not exactly wanting any of the others to hear.

" _I am not sure I understand."_

"Don't worry Merry, it will be okay. There will always be new memories on the horizon and new adventures waiting…." Addy stilled for a moment before speaking up. "Captain, about your question earlier."

"Yeah," Luffy answered. He looked at her and Addy she saw that he knew what she was talking about. Dreams.

"I want to hear the Song of the Sea."


	18. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Like most days it was nice and sunny. The sea was calm and the Merry was making its way across the sea. Each of the Straw Hats were wrapped up in their own thing. Meaning Usopp was messing with whatever gadget he was creating, Nami was reading, Addy fishing so they could have dinner, Zoro napping, and Luffy…. Well Luffy was somewhere. Already nothing good could come out of this.

" _Addy I am not telling you to marry the guy, at least not yet. But something would do you some good. You have been really depressed lately."_

"Merry," she hissed under her breath. "I said this conversation was over and I meant it. Unless something drastic changes nothing is going to happen. "

" _Did I mention you have also been drinking more?"_

Addy huffed and took another swig. Merry was right as per normal, she had been down lately. But that did not mean she was going to start a fling with Zoro. She liked to think she had standards after what happened last time and although Zoro was good looking and generally a nice guy Addy was still unsure about him. One night stands were good, sex multiple times was even better, but the best was when there was a deeper connection. Not love per say but something else that clicked. Right now Zoro was nakama and while she cared for him like she did the others, there wasn't that click. A year ago she would have gone for it but now….

Her thoughts were interrupted by a loud thump. Turning her head she saw Luffy drop a box with danger clearly marked on all sides.

"Whew, this is heavy," he said.

"What is that?" Nami asked sitting up from her lounge chair. Addy jumped off the railing and walked towards Luffy, the fish weren't biting anyways.

"I found these in the storage room." Wow Luffy must have been really bored to have been digging through the storage room. Looking inside the box Addy saw perfectly black round spheres. So Luffy found their stock of cannon balls then. Well at least they knew where they were now. "I figure we could practice using our hard earned cannon."

"Good idea," Addy said. "We should make sure they work before proceeding to the Grand Line."

"Then I'll take care of it," Usopp said. Addy smiled. Usopp was one of the best snipers she knew. With a cannon who knows what damage he could create. "I think I was 3. Traveling half-way around the world, riding on a cannonball."

"How do you use this thing?" Luffy asked looking over the cannon. Usopp seemed miffed at being ignored. "Hey Zoro. Do you know how to use this thing?"

Zoro was completely passed out. Nothing would wake him. "He's been asleep for awhile," Nami said.

"No fun," Luffy pouted looking like a kicked puppy.

Nami dug out one of their maps and was looking at it. "If we go a little south, there's a perfect place for practicing."

"Really? Let's go, let's go. Addy take us south."

"As you wish Captain," she said going into the common room. It would only take a minor couple of adjustments and they would be on their way. Addy decided to stay in the room monitoring the helm, she could use the quiet and the isolation.

" _At least talk to someone about it_ ," Or she would have peace and quiet if it wasn't for a certain ship. " _Luffy, he is sure to help."_

"I am not going to talk to Captain. There isn't anything to talk about. What is going on with me is perfectly normal."

Merry huffed, trying to think of a counter argument. They had been going back and forth like this since leaving Tobio and his Grandfather. It had just been going around in circles with Merry trying every trick she knew in order to get Addy and Zoro alone together. The one time it almost worked is when Merry tricked Addy into the bathroom while Zoro was taking a shower. That was an embarrassing situation for the both of them.

Addy had no idea why Merry wanted her and Zoro together so badly. Sure since she told Luffy and by extension the rest of her crew her dream she has remained distant not interacting with them much. And sure she hasn't been sleeping well but she never sleeps well. While she has taken to the bottle more recently it's only because Merry is bugging her so much. Her problems went deep and getting laid would not be the solution to any of them.

" _It's not just you. Zoro likes you too. I can hear him mumble your name in his sleep sometimes. Maybe he is dreaming about you now."_

"That's not an indication of anything. I guarantee you Luffy does the same thing."

" _Say whatever you will, I know things. He likes you and you're exactly his type."_

"Addy," Nami called walking into the room.

Addy looked up to meet her in the eyes, "Luffy and Usopp giving you trouble?"

"Not any more than usual. Wanted to see how you are doing."

Addy knew exactly what was going on. She shot Nami and smirk. "What do you need?"

"So suspicious, I came to talk." Nami said down at the kitchen table and leaned forward. Perhaps Addy should sleep with Nami instead to get Merry off of her and Zoro though she quickly smacked that idea out of her mind. Same problem with Zoro only even more so with Nami.

Addy slide down so that she was sitting across from Nami at the kitchen table. "You don't have more questions about the Grand Line do you?" Addy said.

"Nope, you answered them all. I have something else to ask you. You said to Luffy that you wanted to hear the Song of the Sea.

Addy groaned. She was worried that this would happen. At least it was Nami and not say Usopp. "It's my dream," she said. "Though it is practically impossible." Nami looked even more confused so Addy continued careful about not giving too much away. "Okay this might be a bit hard to take in, but Ocean is more than just a body of water. It is an actual being, an ancient powerful being which has been around since the dawn of time. Maybe even before then. It has its own thoughts, moods, emotions. Some of my family can sense these things but none of them for a long time have been able to hear its voice. Its voice said to be so beautiful and thrilling that it stirs the spirit, calms the soul and grants power beyond comprehension. That voice is called the Song of the Sea. Ever since my mother told me about it I have wanted to hear it. To hear Ocean speak. But no one in my family has been able to hear it for over a thousand years…"

Nami took one of her hands a wiped away a tear on her face Addy did not even notice before clasping her hands.

"You are really passionate about it."

"Yes… supposedly in order to hear its voice you have to get to know the sea and all its moods. Feels its waves and breaths as if they were your own. To travel along its waters to the far reaches of the world. But it's all impossible. Nothing more than a child's fantasy." Addy took a deep breath and calmed herself. "But enough about me what's your dream?"

"I don't have one. Like you said it's a child's fantasy."

"That was about as believable as one of Usopp's lies."

"Don't insult me." The two of them laughed with Merry joining in.

Addy clutched Nami hands even tighter. "Nami. You can tell me. I promise for as long as you want me to I won't tell a soul. Not even Captain."

"It's just… I want…" Addy waited patiently. "I want to draw a map of the world."

Addy to a moment to process what she said. "Nami why don't you… what is going on?"

"It's complicated…. There is nothing you can…." A loud boom rocked the ship. So Luffy and Usopp were finally launching the cannons.

The two of them wandered back outside to see what the trouble makers were doing now.

"What are you two doing?" Addy asked.

"I missed," Luffy said pointing to a giant rock in the middle of Ocean.

"What are you guys doing?" Zoro asked.

"Glad you're finally awake," Addy called. "You might have missed all the fun otherwise." Zoro actually looked more tired than he did when he started his nap. Addy decided it was best not to bug him. If he wanted to talk he would come to her later.

"We're practicing with the cannon," Luffy stated for Zoro's sake. "But it's harder than I thought it would be."

"I told you, let me show you how it has to be done," Usopp said. Swaggering to the cannon, he adjusted it significantly. Addy could hear it creaking. "Eh, with our current distance…. This is about right. Fire!" The cannon ball went sailing through the air striking the rock exactly in the middle breaking it clean in half.

Addy whistled. "Nice work."

"Amazing," Luffy screamed. "You hit it with one shot."

"It really hit the target," Usopp said sounding surprised. "Of course, when it comes to aiming, I know everything. So you believe now?" Luffy nodded towards Usopp while Zoro smiled down upon them.

"You're the shooter from now on," Luffy said.

Usopp was practically beaming. "What? I'm not the captain?"

"I'm the captain, right Addy."

"Yes Captain," she replied. Usopp stuck his tongue at her and she laughed. "Come on guys, I will prepare sandwiches or something it's time to eat."

"Food," Luffy called out rushing into the common room. Zoro also made his way down but not before brushing shoulders with Addy. Nami was already in there, probably taken a seat. Once Addy made her way up, Usopp, Luffy and Nami were at the table while Zoro was basically asleep in front of the fridge. Addy could see everything was already laid out however.

Taking out some slices for everyone, she started preparing as quickly as possible. Knowing Luffy he might start eating the table, though Usopp was doing a good job keeping him distracted.

"That's okay. I'll let you have the position for now," Usopp told Luffy. "However if you do a poor job, I'm going to replace you." She had the first round of sandwiches ready and Luffy devoured his four as soon as she placed them in front of him. Nami and Usopp ate their more slowly, though they were carefully guarding them from Luffy stretchy hands.

She handed Zoro his, and at least according to Merry what was his favorite. He looked up surprised but mumbled thanks.

As soon as they were all done eating, Addy ate a piece of fish for herself, Luffy picked up the conversation. Nami took out a book and was writing something in it.

"That's fine," Luffy said. "Before that, I've been thinking. Before we go to the Grand Line, we need to fill one more position."

"Right," Nami said. "And we have such a nice kitchen." Addy knew where she was going with this. Personally, Addy agreed. They could use a cook. "If you pay me, I'll do it." Okay perhaps she had no idea where Nami was going with this at all. The woman still surprised her.

"It's an important personnel for any long trip," Zoro said.

"That's right, it's someone that we must have on a pirate ship," said Luffy. They might all actually be on the same page for once. "A musician."

Once again her Captain left her dumb struck. A musician of all things? She could not help but bark out a laugh.

" _I would like a musician,"_ Merry said. " _Just imagine the clear nights with all of you dancing under the stars to the sounds of a violin. Music echoing throughout. It would be beautiful._ "

"It would be," Addy whispered.

Zoro was the first to recover from Luffy's comment. "Are you an idiot?" he asked.

"What the hell do you think sailing is?" Nami responded.

"I thought you were saying something constructive for once," Usopp added in.

"A musician is pretty low on our list of priorities," Addy said.

"But pirates have to sing," Luffy stated as if that cleared up everything.

" _ADDY!"_ Merry screamed _. "There is someone on the ship!"_

"What?" Addy asked before hearing the sound of a barrel breaking.

"Come out you pirates," a voice yelled out.

" _I am sorry Addy,"_ Merry sniffled _. "I was just distracted by…"_

"It's okay, I am sure it's nothing," Addy said. All of them were looking at the door expecting something to burst through. None of them looked particularly worried.

"What, what?" Luffy said opening the door. "Who are you?"

"Shut up!" the voice said. "It doesn't matter who I am." Addy could hear something else break and Luffy screaming. Nami and Usopp had their faces plastered against the window. Addy just sat down across from Zoro. If Luffy needed anything he would call.

"How many are there?" Zoro asked.

"Is there… one?" Nami said.

"Then leave it to him." Addy could still hear stuff breaking.

"You okay Merry," she asked.

" _Yeah, nothing major, couple of railings. Still hurts though._ "

"Luffy will take care of it soon."

"I've killed countless pirates," the voice yelled out. "But a no name pirate like you dares to try and kill my partner."

Zoro looks up as if surprised. "That voice…"

"You know who it is?" Addy asked.

"What do you mean partner," Luffy asked. "I don't know what is going on." When did they ever. "But don't damage our ship. Addy will be very angry if you do." Damn straight she will be. Addy was about to get up and beat the guy herself for all the pain he was causing Merry. She could hear her whimpering. Zoro decided to get up and open the door as well. Addy followed him intending to figure out what was taking Luffy so long. There was one last smash and a groan from Merry before silence took over.

When she got outside standing beside Zoro, she saw a dark skinned man with sunglasses and black hair. He had a tattoo on his left cheek that said sea. Well at least their attacker had some taste.

"Hey you!" Zoro called out. Did he know this person? "Aren't you Johnny?" Seemingly he did.

"Who is it? Calling my name with no respect." Apparently the recognition did not go both ways. The stranger picked his head up and looked at the two of them. "Zoro!"

"So it is Johnny," Zoro responded. Luffy and Addy just looked at the situation, confused as to what the hell was going on.

"Why are you here bro?" Johnny called up

"Where Yosaku? You're not together?"

"What?" Addy and Luffy asked together. "You two know each other?"


	19. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _Some how this has become the longest chapter so far and we finally get Sanji into the story. It is based on the 20th episode and on a fan translation so if any of the dialogue seems off let me know. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Apparently, Johnny decided that introductions weren't important. "Zoro," Johnny said. "Yosaku…he." Johnny ran to the side of the ship where he docked his boat. Zoro followed him. Addy and Luffy exchanged a look before Addy followed the two of them. Peering over the side of the ship at their tiny boat Addy could tell why Johnny was so upset.

Yosaku was bleeding heavily even through the bandages wrapped around his torso. She wondered if he was going to make it much longer. He must have been in some fight in order to get that wound.

Tears were streaming down Johnny face. "Yo- Yosaku is…" Zoro clapped a hand on his shoulder for comfort though how much it provided Addy was unsure. At least it allowed him to finish what he was saying. "Yosaku is ill."

"He's ill?" Zoro asked about as surprised as she was.

"Are you sure," Addy asked. "Because it just looks like he went a couple of rounds with some guy and lost." Johnny shot her a dark glare. Addy held up her hands in defense. "Fine okay he is ill. Why don't we examine him and you can tell us exactly what happened." Johnny looked at Zoro and he gave a sharp nod. That seemed to settle Johnny enough so that he stopped glaring at her.

"Captain," Addy called out.

"Yep," she heard Luffy respond.

"Let Nami and Usopp know what's up." When he didn't respond back Addy assumed that was what Luffy went off to do.

The three of them climbed down the rope that Johnny hooked onto the Merry. From this distance he looked even worse. He had this sickly paleness to him. He was bleeding from his gums and other parts as well. Addy put her hand to his forehead and it was hot to the touch.

"We should bring him onto Merry," Addy said. "We have better resources up there." Zoro nodded and carefully picked him up making sure not to aggravate his injuries too badly. Addy hoped back onto the ship to see Luffy and Usopp staring at her.

"Usopp can you get some blankets that we can put this guy on. He is in pretty rough shape."

"No problem Addy," he said dashing off.

She turned towards Luffy, "Captain help Zoro get him onto the Merry, but be careful."

Luffy nodded and dashed to where the boat was.

" _You think it's okay to bring him on board,"_ Merry asked. " _I don't want you guys getting sick as well,_ " Merry asked.

"If it was contagious than Johnny would have symptoms as well. I don't think there is anything to worry about there." Merry hummed in agreement.

" _Is there anything I can do?"_

"Other than keep us steady and on course for… wherever we are headed."

It was then that Usopp brought out a large blue blanket and laid it across the deck.

"This good?" he asked.

"Perfect," Addy responded. "Okay Luffy, Zoro, you can bring him up now."

It was a slow process even with Luffy's rubber powers. Eventually they got him on deck hopefully without any further injuries.

Yosaku is…" Johnny said still crying. He was leaning down next to his friend who was barely breathing. "He was perfectly fine until a while ago. Then he grew pale and started to lose consciousness. I have no idea why."

Addy could hear footsteps and saw Nami walking down the stairs. Perhaps she would know what's going on. Turning back to Johnny he was still talking about Yosaku. His teeth were falling out and old wounds starting to bled again.

"I just don't know what to do anymore," he said. He was in a sorry state but Addy was sure that there wasn't anything they could do other than make his last moments comfortable. "So I took him to that rocky island to let him rest but then your ship attacked us."

Luffy and Usopp looked shocked, their mouths hanging wide open. It wasn't their fault. There was no possible way they could have known. Though that did explain why Johnny attacked Merry.

The two of them jumped up and bowed slightly to Johnny saying "I'm sorry," at the exact same time.

"If all problems could be solved with an apology, we wouldn't need the police," Johnny said wiping the tears away though more soon took their place. Addy frowned. Sad as it was she understood what he meant. Luffy and Usopp looked even more guilty. It almost seemed to be coming off of them in waves.

"Isn't that right?" Johnny asked. "Partner." These two have been together for a long time. Addy flashed back to another time and place, where another person laid dying and there was nothing that could be done. And Addy knew. She knew exactly what he was going through.

"Bro… is he going to die?" Johnny asked Zoro. How many times had she asked that question even though the answer was always the same? She saw Zoro resolve crack. He was afraid, and unfortunately there was nothing Addy could do to help.

"Are you stupid," Nami asked breaking Addy out of her thoughts. When did she get here?

"What?" she and Zoro asked both confused and angry. Nami ignored them instead lifting Yosaku tongue and pulling his eye lid up. What in the world was she looking for? Pulling on his tongue a couple of times, at least until Johnny grabbed onto her.

"What're are you doing to my buddy here?!" He shouted spitting into her face. He held her arm in a tight grip. "I'll kill you!" Nami placed her free hand on his face attempting to get him to stop yelling. Usopp and Luffy were crying as well. This was an emotional nightmare for all of them.

"Luffy, Usopp," Nami stated. "There are some limes in the storage aren't there?" Only whimpering could be heard from the two of them. "Are you listening? Bring them to me right now." The two of them rushed off as quickly as they could to get the limes though Addy did not see how fruit would help their situation. Particularly when the two of them got stuck in the doorway and fell through into the room. Perhaps Nami didn't want them around when Yosaku died. It wouldn't be much longer now.

It felt like less than a minute however before they came back with what had to be there entire supply of limes.

"Great you two," Nami said. "Now I want you to get as much of the juice as possible into his mouth." Not questioning her they started squeezing limes into him. What this some East Blue funerary right that she hadn't heard of?

"He's got scurvy," Nami said. The four of them were standing out of the way as Luffy and Usopp dripped lime juice into him.

"Scurvy?" Johnny asked which save her from asking.

"We've got him in time. He should recover in a few days."

"Are you sure?" Johnny asked getting right into her face. Addy was skeptical as well. How could limes cure… well anything,

Nami looked rather miffed that Johnny was spitting on her again so Addy pulled him back to a more appropriate distance. Shooting her a grateful look, she picked up where she left off. "In the past it was an incurable disease that plagued sailors. But now it's just a minor problem caused by a lack of vitamin C." A lack of vitamins did this people? Humans were so fragile. "In the past, ships couldn't carry enough fresh fruit to avoid it." Out of desperation Luffy and Usopp started shoving limes into the poor guy's mouth. It would be comical if it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation.

"You sure are something," Luffy said. "Just like a doctor." Luffy was right. This crew would pretty much fall apart without Nami.

"I've always known you were a smart woman," Usopp said.

"Yep that's right." Luffy responded. Apparently all the limes did something because the guy was starting to wake up.

"You should have at least known what this was!" she yelled at the two of them. "It could happen to you sooner or later." She turned towards Addy the fiery anger now smoldering. "Though I am really surprised that you don't know anything about it."

"It never came up," Addy said. "On the ship Vesta… I mean the main cook always made sure that we were eating properly. And my brief stint in the med bay only taught me how to patch up injuries not… whatever this is." Suddenly Yosaku spat out all the limes that were stuffed into him. He was absolutely drenched in lime juice. That however did not stop him and Johnny from dancing around like crazy people. Zoro knew some really strange guys.

"It's working. He's recovering," Johnny shouted. The smile he had could have competed with Luffy.

"Should they really be doing that?" Addy asked.

"You don't recover that quickly!" Nami shouted. Apparently not. At least Nami shouting got them to stop dancing.

"Pardon us for not introducing ourselves," they said simultaneously. How many hours of practice did they need to get that down?

"My name is Johnny."

"And I Yosaku."

"We are pirate hunters," they said together.

"I would have never guessed," Addy mumbled under her breath. Nami caught it and let out a chuckle.

" _Don't be mean,_ " Merry said. " _There Zoro's friends. And we did almost kill them."_

"Zoro used to be one of us as well," Yosaku said. That was something Addy was having trouble picturing in her brain. Really Zoro… Pirate Hunter Zoro…. With these dunderheads? "It's a pleasure to meet you all."

Zoro walked up towards the two. "I never expected to see you guys here," he said.

"But I am even more surprised," Yosaku responded. "The pirate hunter Zoro would become a pirate himself." Actually that was rather curious. How did Luffy manage to recruit him?

"I guess." Zoro raised his hand up and Johnny embraced it with his own. Yosaku was going to do the same but his symptoms came back with full force. Addy stepped forward catching him so that he did not land face first on the deck. Which was kind tricky considering he was taller and heavier than she was.

"Hey, partner?" Johnny said.

"Instead of standing there like a moron help me get him into the men's sleeping quarters," Addy responded. She felt the burden lifted off of her shoulders as Zoro took him in his arms carrying him gentle to the sleeping quarters.

"We should let him get some rest," Nami said. "Addy we need to change course, and I should get started on dinner." Addy barely noticed but the sun was starting to set. With all the commotion Addy barely felt time passing.

"Food," Luffy yelled.

"Yeah, yeah we will call you when it is ready."

Addy and Nami went back to the common room to their various tasks. A comfortable silence fell between the two. Usopp joined them after a few minutes, tinkering with some device on the kitchen table. They should really get him a workshop or something. Zoro also came in with Johnny after they got Yosaku settled in. Finally Luffy stopped in demanding food, which Nami provided. Unlike the meal earlier this day everyone was quiet. Yosaku really shook all of them up. Even Luffy was being quiet and that almost never happened.

After the meal was done they all sat there with various tasks. The silence was eerie. Addy almost wished Merry would say something but she took on the mood of the crew and right now something was off.

"Let this be a lesson for us," Nami spoke finally breaking the silence.

"Yeah," Zoro responded. "These kind of things can happen on a long trip."

"Especially since we don't have much room for food on this ship," Usopp added in.

"Right it's even more important that we bring exactly what we need and are stocked up on it," Addy said.

"Speaking of which," Nami said. She was writing something in her journal. "We should get somebody who'd know about this dietary business. Particularly with some of our weird food habits."

"You mean my weird food habits," Addy said. "No reason to ignore them."

Luffy was munching on some bread. "Dietary eh," he said. "I've got it." It was like a lightbulb went off in his head. "We need a sea cook." They all turned to look at him except for Zoro who was sleeping in the corner. "Let's go look for a sea cook."

"Well at least that's a better suggestion than the musician." Addy said.

" _I still want a musician though,"_ Merry pouted. " _Though could you imagine the various smells wafting through the kitchen? I could really become a home."_

"You already are Merry," Addy said.

"I get it," Ussop said finally catching on. "Then, we'd have all sorts of delicious food to eat."

"Exactly!" Luffy said with a massive grin.

"If you're looking for such a cook, I know where you could go," Johnny stated. Addy almost jumped. That was the first time he said anything in a while.

"Yeah that's the spirit," Luffy said. "So, where would that be?"

"But it's pretty close to the Grand Line and that man that Zoro been hunting for. Hawk Eye is around there too." Wait hold on a minute. He can't mean Mihawk. No. Why would Zoro be after Mihawk? He must mean another Hawk Eye because if it is Mihawk than there all screwed. Like getting stuck in Impel Down level screwed. Johnny walked across the kitchen to stand in front of Zoro. Apparently he wasn't asleep because he gripped the white blade of his with both hands. A look entered his eyes and a shiver ran down Addy's spine. "Its direction is North-northeast." Johnny stuck out his arm and pointed which direction they should head in. Excitement flowed through all of them. One new crewmember meant one step closer to the Grand Line and to Raftel.

"Addy," Luffy said. And that was all she needed. Grabbing the helm she turned the ship in the opposite direction moving smoothly across the ocean. They would be traveling with Wind so it wouldn't be that long before they reached their destination. Addy suspected that they would get there around morning. The broke apart after that with them doing various tasks.

Addy climbed up into the crow's nest to look at the stars above. Out here with nothing but the sky above it was wonderful.

" _You don't have to be up here by yourself you know,"_ Merry said. " _You do have nakama that you can hang with. Plus you also sort of need this thing called sleep. I heard it's very good for you."_

"I would but the chances of me sleeping tonight are absolutely zero," Addy said.

"Why? Bad dreams?" Usopp asked. Addy looked at him startled. When did he climb the crows nest?

"Not two seconds ago," he answered. "Here." He handed her a mug of something warm. Addy could see the steam rising up and felt the heat through the mug. "I assume you don't drink milk so I made tea." She looked at him skeptically before taking a sip. It was actually quite pleasant.

"Thanks," she said.

"No problem, it's something I do to help me sleep. I figured you could use it as well."

"As much as I appreciate the effort, sleep isn't going to come to me."

"You won't know until you try." She laughed. "Come on I know there is a nice warm bed for you."

"Honestly I like sleeping out in the open air. Inside I feel too cramped."

"Well than sleep right here. Zoro somehow manages it. And I will keep watch."

"You sure?"

"Certainly, for I am the brave Captain Usopp. Nothing will stand in my way."

"Whatever you say." She sat down and leaned back against the crow's nest. She could feel her eyes starting to droop.

" _Relax Addy,"_ Merry said. " _Like you said. You're home."_

…

She felt something shaking her awake. Opening her eyes she glared at whatever decided to wake her up only to be face to face with Luffy.

"Hey," he said. "Nami said to get up and get to the helm. We're here." Addy got up and saw what they were approaching. It looked like a boat in the shape of a fish with a house on top. What?

Addy jumped off the crows nest and landed safely on the balls of her feet. Luffy soon joined her and together they walked until the stood right in front of the figurehead. They watched the ship get closer and closer. She could just make out the name. Baratie.

"Whatcha think guys?" Johnny asked.

"Oh, that's a humongous fish," Luffy said.

"Isn't it amazing," Nami said.

"It's creative I give it that," Addy said.

" _I hope they are nice,"_ Merry said. " _It's been awhile since we met another ship that wasn't trying to kill us._ "

"Who knows, they might actually be happy to see us." Suddenly there was a loud honking noise piercing the air. Addy recognized that sound in an instant. Whipping around she grabbed ahold of her whip and turned to face the approaching ship.

"Marines," she growled.

"It didn't come all this way to just attack us, did it?" Ussop asked.

"If they did than they are soon going to regret it," Addy said.

"You don't like Marines do you?" Nami said. "I mean even more so than most pirates."

"Let's just say that the Marines are on my list of people who really, really should stay far away from me if they want all their blood to remain in their bodies."

"Eh, that's dark," Ussop said.

Addy shrugged not particularly caring though she did notice Zoro and Luffy looking at her.

" _Addy,"_ Merry asked. " _They don't have anything to do with your Soul…"_

"I've never seen your pirate mark before," a voice from the Marine ship called out. Wearing a bright white pinstripe suit which clashed horrible with his pink hair he looked about as much of a threat as Dagmar was. Even with the brass knuckles. "I'm a Marine lieutenant. Iron Fist Fullbody." They really needed to come up with better names for themselves. "Hey, who is your captain? Show yourself."

Luffy stepped forward to announce himself. Addy was hoping that the Marines would attack. It has been far too long since she was in a fight with them. Unfortunately for whatever reason Usopp decided to step up as well. Addy did not see the need. It was only a Marine lieutenant; they didn't have to resort to trickery. Luffy could probably punch him once and that would be enough.

"Our pirate mark was just made a week ago," Luffy said.

"I was the one who made our pirate mark," Usopp called out. What were they having a competition because if so, Usopp was going to lose.

"What's wrong with you people?" Fullbody asked. There was a moment hesitation. "I've seen those two before." Addy turned to see what he was looking at only to find Johnny and Yosaku attempting to hide behind a doorway. Idiots. If they really wanted to hide why didn't they go inside? "You claim to be pirate hunters, don't you?"

"Wh-what?" Johnny said.

"It looks like you finally caught yourselves some."

The two of them were trembling in anger. "We are…"

Fullbody chuckled. "This is too good."

"Enough of this," Addy said speaking low enough so only the crew could hear her. "Captain, permission to go over there and beat them senseless."

Luffy was about to say go ahead when a women in a red dress with nicely done up blond hair came up on deck. That changed things slightly. Addy did not want civilians caught up in what could quickly turn into a blood bath.

"Hey, let's go now," the woman spoke. Her voice was dainty and soft. From the way she held herself she was clearly from an upper class. Ocean help her if she was a noble because Addy then would really go over there and kill them.

"I'll show you what it is we pirate hunters do" Johnny said taking something out of his coat. Not that the Marine was paying any attention. He and his lady friend turned their backs towards the Straw Hats.

Bounty posters went flying about the deck. Some were crossed out while others were completely unmarked. Some old, some new. Addy ignored it and turned back towards the Marine ship. There was no way that they weren't going to attack them. Only question was when.

She was answered when the cannons started to ready themselves. At this distance it would tear through the hull like paper.

"This is bad," Ussop said. "They're aiming right for us." As he said that, Addy heard the explosions. The shockwave created ripples in Ocean.

"Leave it to me," Luffy called out. "Gomu Gomu no…" he stretched out his arms so that one was curled around the figure head and the other around the mast like he was creating a sling shot. The cannon ball hit him straight in the middle sending him rocketing back. "Pachinko." Unfortunately, a piece of Merry figure head broke off from the strain and Luffy swerved around changing the direction of the cannon ball. Instead of the Marine ship it was heading straight for…. The Baratie.

Addy watched as the cannon ball went flying directly into the roof creating a loud explosion.

"You know when I said that they would be happy to see us," Addy said.

" _Yeah,"_ Merry answered.

"I don't think that anymore."

"Luffy," Nami said her voice sweet. Addy gulped she knew what was going to happen. "OUT OF ALL THE STUPID BRAIN DEAD THINGS TO DO, YOU HAD TO GO BLOW UP THE RESTAURANT."

"It was him?" A voice called out. All of them looked down to see a tiny rowboat with two chefs on it. That was quick. "Hand him over this instant."

"Any complaints for why I shouldn't do that," Nami asked. They all shook their heads. Nami proceeded to grab Luffy and toss him to the chefs waiting below. Either Nami was stronger than she seemed or Luffy was incredibly light.

"Wait you're willing to hand Luffy over to the chefs," Usopp asked both her and Zoro.

"Why not?" Addy said. "Their chefs, not highly trained combat soldiers. What are they going to do? Besides if we didn't Luffy would walk over there anyway and ask for forgiveness. This way we don't have to wait until he wakes up."

Zoro nodded. "Besides," he said. "Those fools might actually make the mistake and try to feed him."

"Only question left then, is what to do about the Marine ship?"

" _Actually, before you go off attacking the Marines can you do some minor repairs? I am already pretty sore as it is. And I want to be perfect for my first Marine battle."_

Addy winced, "Right, you two," she said pointing to Johnny and Yosaku. "Fix Merry up."

"What why?" Yosaku asked.

"Because a good deal of the damaged was caused by Johnny attacking us and we did save your life. Now get to it."

"Zoro," they called out together.

"She's right," he said with a smile.

The two of them got to work while Nami, Addy and Usopp laid by the figure head while Zoro napped against the railing. Addy wondered why the Marines weren't continuing to attack them. Perhaps they couldn't handle anything without there commander present. Whatever the case it had been a half hour and nothing has happened.

"Luffy's sure taking a while," Usopp said.

"Yeah," Nami responded.

" _I hope nothing has happened_ ," Merry said.

"We could always go over and ask," Addy stated.

"How long have we been waiting," Usopp asked. "Feels like a month already."

"If he'd just change his personality this sort of thing wouldn't happen," Nami said. "He's too honest for his own good."

"We should really teach him how to lie," Addy pointed out. "Though I think that would be a lost cause." Another explosion came from the ship. Addy sighed. This day was going wonderfully.

"That's it lets go," Nami said. "He is taking way too long. Plus I am staving."

"I second that," Usopp stated.

"So wait, you want to leave Merry while there is a Marine ship right next to us?" Addy asked.

"It's not like they have done anything," Nami replied. "Besides Johnny and Yosaku can look after the ship."

Addy looked at her wide eyed. "You want to leave them on Merry…"

"Yes, Usopp and Zoro need to row the boat and you haven't eaten properly in days." Addy was about to open her mouth but immediately closed it again under Nami's glare. "Now get your butt on the boat."

" _Don't worry Addy. I will call if I need help. Besides it's a chance to have good food for once," Merry stated. "I also want to speak with Bartie for a while. Without you listening."_

"Fine, fine. I will get on the boat," Addy grumbled.

Which is why she was now docked at the restaurant with the others. The trip across did not take too long, particularly with Zoro rowing. They heard a large crash coming from inside spooking Usopp who was tying the boat to the dock.

"Well at least it is lively," Addy said. "Oh well we might as well go in."

"True that, Zoro lead the way," Nami said.

"Huh, why me?" he asked.

"Because if there is trouble on the other side than you can deal with it."

Zoro grumbled but got up to open the door anyway. Looking into the restaurant Addy could tell it was a very fancy place. The diners were all dressed up, the table cloths elegant. Everything in its place. It made Addy want to gag. The only thing that seemed out of place was the broken table and what appeared to be one of the waiters holding Fullbody up by his throat. He was already in Addy's good books. She would make sure that Nami tipped him nicely. The waiter was tall, blond and handsome. Wearing a nice black suit and tie he fit the surroundings perfectly though the smoking was a bit off putting.

"Was there a fight or something?" Zoro asked.

"What sad you missed out?" Addy asked.

He threw her a smirk, "Aren't you?"

"Extremely."

"Don't go ruining our food," the waiter said. "Messing with a cook of the sea is a good way to get yourself killed. Remember that well." At that moment Addy smiled. She knew who she wanted to be their cook. Only question was how to get Luffy to agree.


	20. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _Sorry about the delay. I had a lot going on in my life. Hopefully I can get back to weekly updates. This_ _is based on the 21th episode and on a fan translation so if any of the dialogue seems off let me know. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Sorry for the mess," one of the cooks said approaching them. Did the restaurant not have waiters? "We have a table ready for you here."

"Oh how nice," Nami said sweetly. Addy hoped that they could afford this place. They should be able to considering all the treasure aboard Merry. The chef/waiter guided them to one of the few empty tables. It had a full view of the restaurant and more importantly of the fight that was happening.

Suddenly an average sized muscular man came out from one of the door ways. He was wearing a navy blue shirt with buttons on the sides with knee length shorts that were the same color. He had a white apron tied around his waist. He stuck out like a sore thumb.

"You're at it again Sanji?" he said pointing towards the blond. Well now Addy could put a name to his face. And apparently attacking customers was something that Sanji did on a regular basis. "What're you doing to our customer?" He started to walk towards Sanji his tone getting slightly angrier with each step. "Isn't that a Marine lieutenant?"

"Gotta problem you crappy cook?" Sanji asked. "Don't talk to me that way!"

"A crappy cook like you has no right to call me crappy! To a restaurant, customers are everything!" Things were getting good now. The big guy was right up in Sanji's face. "Beating up our valuable customers, what're you thinking?"

"Customer or not it's no different. This guy not only ruined our dishes, he also insulted its chef!" Sanji dropped him and Fullbody collapsed in a pile on the floor. Addy gave a little cheer on the inside. "That's why I thought I should teach him a lesson."

"What kind of restaurant is this?" Fullbody asked. He was trembling on the ground. "Do you treat all your customers this way? How does it stay in business?" Probably with good food and hopefully a lot of it. "I'll destroy it." Okay no. If the chefs didn't do anything Addy would, if only to prevent the Marines from getting any sort of victory out of this. They would probably think he was lost at sea or something. "I'll destroy your precious little restaurant. I'll destroy it." Sanji seemed to be getting angrier and angrier the more the guy spoke. "I'll contact my superiors right now!"

"I guess that means I can't let you leave this place alive," Sanji said. Oh this guy was getting a massive tip indeed. Fullbody looked up shocked and scared. Sanji took several steps towards him before being stopped by the other chefs. Addy let out a sigh of disappointment that weirded out Nami and Usopp though Zoro let out a chuckle.

Everything was broken up however when Luffy fell through the ceiling with what appeared to be another chef. What has he been up to? He was yelling at the old chef in the middle of the floor, everyone wondering what in the world was going on.

"Hey Sanji," the old chef said getting up off the floor. He had a peg leg which was sort of odd. Didn't see many of those outside the Grand Line. "Were you fighting in my restaurant again, you ingrate?" Ah so he was the owner. Sort of explains why Luffy was fighting with him then.

"Shut up, old fart," Sanji said.

"What? Who do you think you're talking to?!" Sanji stopped fighting the other chefs at this point and they let him go. "You wanna destroy my restaurant? You insolent boy." He kicked Sanji in the face with his peg leg. He then turned to Fullbody. "Your another one. Get the hell outta here." He kicked him as well sending him sprawling on the floor. Addy was going to write a review of this place and send it to the news. 10 out of 10 would come again. Great food, good service and excellent entertainment. The chefs were almost like a pirate gang. It was brilliant.

"You got that," muscular chef called. "The customers are Gods!"

"Only the ones who can stand your cooking," Sanji said.

"Patty, Sanji! If you want to fight, don't go doing it in front of our customers," owner said. No please continue to fight in front of us. Particularly if it is Marines you are beating up.

"Lieutenant," someone called out. "Lieutenant Fullbody." A Marine came running up looking a little worse for the wear. "We've got a problem!" Excellent, problems for Marines are usually a very good thing. "The pirate Krieg's man has escaped."

"What?" Fullbody said.

"We thought he could've given us a lead on Krieg. We've already lost seven of our men." Maybe that is why they didn't attack Merry earlier. They were too busy dealing with one prisoner. Seriously how incompetent could the Marines be?

"That's ridiculous. When we got him three days ago, he was about to starve to death. And we haven't feed him yet have we?" Addy snarled at that. Zoro had to hold her down to keep her from beating Fullbody and every other Marine on the blasted ship to death. She glared at Zoro and he glared back. There was some sympathy but that only made his grip tighten. This was one fight she wasn't going to win. She growled but settled back down. With barely anyone on Merry it was probably not a good idea to fight… but still Addy was tempted. How dare they? How dare they hold a man hostage for three days and not let him eat. It doesn't matter what he did, that was torture. The Marines were just bullies who hide behind the World Government and their so called justice so they can do as they please. It was sickening.

No one else seemed to care about the half-starved man however. Most of the customers were talking about the Don Krieg pirates, whoever the bloody Hell they were.

"Isn't he supposedly the most powerful pirate in all of East Blue?" she heard one of the customers say.

"Most powerful pirate," Usopp squeaked. Addy rolled her eyes, now they got him started on it.

"Look Usopp," she said. "Even if he is somehow the most powerful pirate in all of East Blue, which I somehow doubt. He is going to be absolutely nothing compared to the pirates we are going to meet on the Grand Line."

"That's not helpful."

"Pirates really that tough on the Grand Line?" Zoro asked.

Addy grinned, "Zoro, you are in for a treat." A look of excitement crossed his face.

A gun shot pierced the air and Addy once again turned towards the commotion. Another man stepped through the doorway holding out a pistol. So that must be the escaped pirate. He was a relatively thin guy of about average height with short scruffy hair and beard. He looked like he hadn't slept in days and considering he was held by Marines that might be very true.

All the other customers ran as far away as they could. The Straw Hats were the only ones still sitting down at this point.

"Another customer has arrived," Patty said.

"He'd better not cause anymore trouble in my restaurant," owner said.

The pirate walked in and sat down at one of the empty tables. He looked like he had been through the Grand Line only for it to spit he back out again. Torn up and bloody. It seemed like it took all of his energy to lift his leg up on the table.

"I don't care what it is," he spoke his voice rough. They probably did not give him any water either the bastards. "Bring me some food." He leaned his head back giving Addy a chance to see the blood trailing down his face. "This is a restaurant, isn't it?"

"Welcome, mere bastard," Patty said.

"I'll only say it once more so listen up. Bring me some food."

"I'm sorry Sir, but we'll be expecting you to pay for a meal here." Oh just give the guy some food already. Ocean knows, he needs it. "Do you have enough money?"

In one shift move the pirate brought up a gun to Patty head, hand on the trigger ready to pull. He wasn't playing any games here.

"Is a bullet okay?"

"So I take it you don't have any money." Patty brought his fists together and smashed one of the chairs. It fell apart sending debris everywhere. Addy managed to flick away the debris that was coming at them with her whip. Did all the cooks in this place know how to fight? "If you can't pay up, than you can't eat." While that was a sound economic policy Addy could not help but feel bad for him. She could almost hear his stomach growling.

"Hurry up and get me something to eat," the pirate repeated.

"You're no customer. So get the hell outta here!" Patty shouted. He started kicking the pirate on the ground now. He was lying on the ground defeated while Patty celebrated his so called victory. Sometimes Addy really, really hated humans but there was nothing that she could do. All the money that she once had Nami confiscated and made it a part of the ships fund. As much as she loved Nami, she was an absolute cheapskate. Patty took the pirate and threw him out back.

At some point Luffy disappeared. Addy looked around the room for him but he was nowhere to be seen. Sanji did as well though Addy suspected that he was in the kitchen doing his job unlike the rest of the chefs around this place. Suddenly a plate of Sashimi was placed in front of her. She looked at it surprised.

"When did we order?" she asked.

"A while ago, during the fight," Nami said digging into her food. "This is only one course of many so dig in." Addy did so. The food was excellent as she expected it would be. She savored each of the flavors. They should have found this place sooner. Also they made sure to keep their wine glasses full. Something Addy was extremely grateful for.

After eating through the first course and going into the second which consisted of a nice grilled trout.

"Hey," Addy asked the chef who brought the food out. "Do you know what happen to our Captain? He is the guy in the red shirt. The one that caused the hole in the roof."

"That guy is your captain?" he asked. They all nodded. "Well I am sorry to tell you this but owner Zeff insisted that he works here for a full year."

"Well that's not going to happen," Addy said as the chef dashed back to the kitchen.

"Still not sure how he is going to get out of it," Usopp said.

"He will find a way." It was then Addy saw Luffy walking down the stairs wearing an apron.

"Hey waiter," Nami called.

"Hey, it's you guys," Luffy called down.

"Hey, I heard that you've got to work here for a year," Usopp stated.

"Can I redraw the pirate flag," Zoro asked.

"What's all this," Luffy asked looking over the food with jealously in his eyes. Of course that is what Luffy focused on.

"It's called food," Addy said. "You eat it in order to gain strength and sustain yourself." That earned her a glare from Luffy and a laugh from everyone else.

"You all stuff yourselves with such great food while I'm not around?! That hurts!"

"It's the only time we can stuff ourselves with food."

"It's our own free will," Zoro said smiling. He was laughing at Luffy predicament which to be fair was rather funny. He turned his head away from Luffy so he didn't see Luffy sneak a booger into his glass. This caused Usopp and Nami to start chuckling. Addy had a massive grin on her face. She loved this crew.

"But I've got to admit," Zoro said. "The food here is great." He picked up the glass and brought it up towards his mouth. "I feel kinda sorry for you." The chuckling was getting worse, particularly from Nami. Addy started up as well. Suddenly Zoro grabbed Luffy and brought the glass to his mouth forcing him to drink. "You drink it." The laughing intensified significantly.

"Why'd you do that?" Luffy asked. He was struggling on the ground.

Zoro was standing over him menacingly. "You, too. What were you trying to pull?" The three of them were laughing hysterically. Addy had to whip away a couple of tears from her eyes.

"My stomach aching."

Addy saw that all the customers were looking at them strangely. Why should they care though? They can think whatever they wanted about them.

"O' Mother Ocean!" she heard Sanji say. She was sitting next to Usopp and on his other side was Nami. She turned towards the voice and saw Sanji leaning down kneeling down in front of Nami holding what had to be a glittery rose. "Thank you for arranging this encounter today." They stopped laughing and stared at him. "Oh my love." Addy rolled her eyes. He was one of those guys. Those guys who were sweet and showered you with gifts and claims of your beauty. Who talked of soul mates and destiny and a lot of other romantic nonsense. Personally Addy hated it but some girls and guys absolutely loved it. Addy was unsure but if she was right about Nami she was going to lap it up and turn it to her advantage. Now that she got a closer look at him Addy could see that his hair covered half his face. Wouldn't that make it harder to see? "Go on laugh at me." Sanji covered his face with his hand. Addy was half tempted to but didn't want to interrupt. "I, who can't bear torture. As long as I am with you, it matters not if I'm a pirate or a devil. My heart is as ready as it can be." Addy was now sufficiently weirded out. His eye basically turned into a giant love heart as he gazed at Nami. The others were creeped out as well. He seemed to notice that the rest of them were staring at him as well. Or unfortunately that Addy was staring. "Ah forgive me." He bowed towards her. Lovely. "I did not see you there and such…"

"If you're going to say exotic beauty, I will punch you in the face," Addy said getting a smirk out of Zoro.

"No of course not. Something so plain could never describe you, and your ethereal essence." Do all men share pickup lines or do the just happen to come up with the same ones coincidentally? "But this is horrible!" He was still going on? "There's such a great obstacle between us!"

"The obstacle is me right?" Zeff said. Oh thank everything, someone came to rescue them from this nightmare. "Sanji."

"The old fart."

"This is just great. Why don't you run off and be a pirate just like them." Sanji looked angry at that moment and turned to face Zeff. "We don't need you here anymore."


	21. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Hey, old fart," Sanji said. "Aren't I the assistant head chef around here?" That was going to make him hard to recruit. Despite him being an obnoxious flirt there was something about him that Addy liked. "What's your crap about not needing me anymore?"

"You always fight with our customers," Zeff said. "You flirt with any beautiful women in sight." Guy needs to get some better taste then. "And you make lousy food." Ouch. "You're nothing more than a burden to this restaurant. That's what I mean."

"What the…?!" Addy could hear the other chefs chucking upstairs. The rest of the restaurant was silence, watching the exchange between Zeff and Sanji. Sanji noticed this as well and that made him tense.

"The other cooks don't like you anyway. Why don't you just become a pirate or whatever you please? Why don't you just get the hell out of here!?"

"What's this crap? I didn't do shit and now you're blowing your head off old fart?" Sanji took a few steps towards him his shoes making a clicking sound as he walked. "I don't care about the rest of your excuses. But I'll never allow my cooking to be insulted. I don't care what the hell you're going to say. I'm going to stay right here as a chef!" Sanji grabbed ahold of Zeff shirt anger rushing through him. "If you don't like it, it's your problem!"

"How dare you hit your own boss!" Zeff grabbed onto Sanji and threw him. "You stupid eggplant!" Sanji smashed right into their table. Luckily Zoro, Usopp, Nami and Addy managed to grab all the dishes so that they did not go down with the table. It would have been an absolute shame if they did. Waste of perfectly good food.

"Dammit," Sanji said. Somehow, Addy thought, this wasn't a fight that he was going to win. "Are you kidding? No matter how hard you try. I'm going to stay right here as chef! Till the day you go to Hell."

Zeff turned his back and started walking away leaving Sanji on the floor. "I won't die," he said. "I'll live for another 100 years." Addy hoped he wouldn't. Most humans could not handle living longer than there expected lifespans. That was true for most species actually.

"What a stubborn old man."

"Isn't it great that he gave you his blessing?" Luffy said clapping him on the shoulder. Ah so Luffy did want him to join the crew. Good to know. "Now you can come with us."

"Hell no," Sanji yelled at him. He jumped back on his feet in one swift motion before pulling the table back up and arranging all the silverware and everything nicely. He was really good at his job. All of them put the plates back on the table with Sanji arranging them nicely. From out of nowhere he pulled out a bottle and poured something for both Nami and Addy along with placing what looked like a weird fruity thing in front of her.

"Please pardon me for what has happened," he said smoothly. He placed what looked like crab bites in front of Addy. Where was he getting these from? "As an apology, I've ordered you a Fruit Macedonia, my princess." Nami was lapping up the attention. "And for you my…countess some crab rangoon."

"Why, thank you," Nami said.

"You get points for the seafood," Addy said. She felt Nami kick her from underneath the table. Addy glared at her but held her tongue. What was she planning?

"You're so kind," Nami gushed.

"What's this?" Usopp asked. "You're not apologizing to us? I'll sue you, you love cook." Ha, good one Usopp.

Sanji got right into his face holding up what looked like a cup of hot tea. They were hovering right above Nami. She was looking rather nervous, though Addy was wondering if that was because of the potential fight or the face that the tea might spill on her. "I've brought you some tea, isn't that enough?" Sanji asked. "You should thank me, long nose."

"Huh? Picking a fight? I won't be easy on you." Usopp he could turn you into a cream puff, if his fight with the Marine was any indication. Addy had a feeling that wasn't even close to his true strength. "Get him Zoro."

"Do it yourself," Zoro muttered taking a drink.

"Please don't fight over me!" Nami said clasping her hands together.

"Very well, Ma'am. I'll stop," Sanji said. This guy is so easy to manipulate.

"Who's fighting over you?" Usopp yelled.

"By the way…" Nami asked. "The food here is great, but it's a bit expensive for me." She was milking him for all he was worth.

"Of course I won't make you pay," Sanji said. She enveloped him in a hug and Sanji looked like he was about to explode.

"Really Nami?" Addy asked. They had the treasure to pay.

"Ah, it will be free for you as well my dear," Sanji said. Well she was never one to turn down free food.

"You guys have to," Sanji said to Zoro and Usopp.

"I already saw that coming," Zoro said.

"Don't worry, we will figure out some way to cheat the system," Addy whispered to him.

Luffy was sitting at the table laughing at what was going on until Sanji kicked him in the neck. If he wasn't made out of rubber he would have probably been sent crashing into the wall.

"Hey, why are you slacking off here?" Sanji asked him. He grabbed Luffy and started dragging him off somewhere. "Go give the guests towels when they come in."

"Yes Sir," Luffy said sounding defeated.

"Shouldn't we go get Luffy," Usopp asked.

"I don't think Captain will let us leave," Addy stated. "Not until he has sorted out how to pay for the damage."

"How long do you think that would take?"

"Come on, this is Captain we are talking about. I wouldn't be surprised if they figure he is too much trouble and throw him out in about an hour. We are going to be here for like a day. Max."

…

"How has it been four days already?" Addy asked staring up at the sky. Not that there was much, everything was covered in a thick layer of fog. She was lying on Merry's deck. After the night of day one she sailed Merry closer to the restaurant thinking that they were not going to stay all that long. Perhaps grab breakfast and then leave. She was completely wrong on that.

" _I don't know_ ," Merry said. _"But a break could do us all some good. Not everything can be go, go, go."_

"I'm getting fed up with this place," Usopp said. He was leaning against Merry railing with Zoro sitting next to him. Nami was staring off into the distance. "How soon can we leave, ya think?"

"As soon as we can come with a plan to kidnap Captain and not let him know we are kidnapping him," Addy said.

" _Addy!_ " Merry said. " _Luffy does have a debt that needs to be paid. It would be wrong if we just ran off."_

"Even then Luffy would probably make us come right back," Zoro said.

"You don't think he'll really be stuck here for a year, do you." Usopp asked.

"No," Addy said. "I am pretty sure we will think of some way to escape before a year passes."

" _Addy,"_ Merry said.

"Why not?" Nami asked. "We've got free food, a cozy atmosphere."

"You're the only one," Zoro said.

"Oh come on, Addy what do you think?"

"I think I got sick of this place after day 2. Eating fancy once in a while is good but continuously sort of takes the fun out of it," Addy stated sitting up. "Not to mention all the overbearing, ignorant, deceitful, whiny, snobby customers."

"They are just people who are well off. I think some of them may be nobles."

"So what part of my description was wrong then?" Nami rolled her eyes at her but Addy shrugged her off. She has been ranting about them for four days now. "Besides there is stuff I would rather be doing right now. Like pretty much anything."

"Got that right," Zoro said.

Addy could see Luffy on the deck of Bartie carrying a giant trash bag. Unfortunately after day one they started giving Luffy tasks that he could actually handle. Makes them kicking him off a less likely possibility.

"Hey, Luffy!" Usopp called down to him.

"Yeah," Luffy called back.

"What's up with you? Hurry up and get out of this mess!"

"Ah, can't you guys wait just a bit longer?"

"Captain," Addy stated. "If we wait much longer I am probably going to crack and start stabbing guests with forks."

"I'll try talking to the boss again," Luffy responded.

"Please do," Usopp said.

" _I think a ship is approaching,"_ Merry said. " _It appears to be damaged."_

"Finally," Addy said jumping up on her feet. "Something exciting is happening."

"What?" Usopp asked.

"A ship is approaching." Soon enough they could all see a black dot in the distance, closing in rapidly. As it came closer Addy realized what kind of ship it was. It was a massive galleon, at least three times the size of the Bartie. Its figure head was that of a sabre tooth tiger, yet something was very wrong. The ship looked like it had been through a war zone. The figure head was missing a piece and the sails were completely torn up. There were several cracks running across the hull. Even the black flag was torn up. Addy did not recognize the mark but still… what the hell happened to these pirates. In East Blue of all places. The ship was barely sea worthy and Addy could it moaning in pain.

" _Addy, why don't you talk to it_ ," Merry asked. " _Find out what happened. He would probably be more receptive to you than to me._ "

"I can't, not unless their captain invites me to do so, or they initiate the conversation," Addy whispered. "Even if it is a friendly or enemy ship there are no exceptions. To do so would violate the rules of the sea."

" _Still, I am worried. He is in a lot of pain."_

"I can feel that too." It was taking some effort to block out the whimpers and the groans coming off from the ship. Addy wished the crew would put it out of its misery. That would be the honorable thing to do. Its shadow covered Baratie and all the other ships as well including Merry making everything seem even more dark.

Addy gripped her whip as Zoro placed his hands on his swords. He was prepared for a fight. She looked at him. He was a bounty hunter in the area, perhaps he knew who these guys were.

"Don Krieg," Zoro said. Ah, so the rest of the guy's crew from four days ago were coming. Addy wondered what took them so long.

"Hey, we outta get out of here ourselves," Usopp said. He and Nami looked absolutely terrified.

"That ship's huge," Nami said. It was imposing Addy would give it that, though more because it looked like a ghost ship rather than its actual size. Suddenly the fog cleared and the sun started shinning down allowing everyone else to see the full extent of the damage.

A large man with short gray hair and a large fur coat jumped off the deck of the wrecked ship and onto Baratie. He had a large gold chain around his neck that clinked as he walked and a large white bandage wrapped around his head. Addy also spotted the man from before helping him walk.

"Don Krieg?" she asked.

"Don Krieg," Zoro answered.

Addy sighed. "Well whatever happened, he looks like he has been through Hell. Still we should be careful."

"You don't think we can handle them?" Zoro asked.

Addy shook her head rapidly. "Really? Of course we can take them. I am more worried about what caused the damage to their ship. I don't want Merry to be caught up in anything."

" _I appreciate that,"_ Merry said.

Zoro hummed in acknowledgment. "We should wait and see what happens then." He removed his hands from his swords. "Luffy should be able to handle it."

"If is in a similar condition as the guy who came in before, Captain won't have to."

Suddenly there was screaming and all the customers from Baratie started running to their ships. Something must have happened to trigger this panic.

"What's going on in the restaurant?" Usopp asked.

"A very good question," Addy said.

"Let's go check it out," Zoro suggested. Addy already beat him to it. She jumped onto Baratie's deck hand on her whip.

"What?! You serious?!" Usopp asked.

"What's wrong? You scared?"

"Don't be silly!"

"You guys just going to stand there and leave me with all the work?" Addy called out.

Zoro smirked and jumped down next to her grabbing Usopp by the collar despite his complaining.

"You said you weren't scared," Zoro stated. "Now is your chance to prove it."

"Nami," Addy called back towards the ship. "Take care of Merry will you?"

"Not a scratch will come to her," Nami called back.

" _And I will take care of Nami,"_ Merry said.

Addy grinned at the two of them before turning towards Zoro and Usopp. "Now let's get going. There should be a back entrance that we can sneak into somewhere."

"Why not go through the front door," Zoro asked. "Corner them from behind."

"Honestly I don't exactly want to walk into the middle of a brawl, which is what sounds like is happening from all the shouting going on. I would much rather jump in rather than get sucked in."

"I vote for Addy's plan," Usopp said. He was shuddering and his legs looked like they were about to give out from under him.

"I thought I saw a staircase around the back," Addy said turning to the direction where the closest set of stairs was. Zoro went completely in the other direction and Addy had to grab onto him before he wander off to who knows where. They managed to get far enough away from the entrance that when a massive explosion went off it did not even scratch them. If they were any closer they would have most likely been blown up along with the door. Addy ears were still ringing however and gray smoke enveloped them. It didn't take too long to clear however but it still made Addy worried.

"We should hurry," Zoro said. Addy nodded in agreement.

"You want to go closer to where the explosion was?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah," Addy said starting to ascend the stairs. "How else are we going to find out what is going on." Addy heard the sound of gunshots and increased her pace. Luffy might be fine but as far as Addy knew everyone else in the restaurant was human and Addy did not exactly want to fight among corpses. They tended to get in the way.

The three of them reached the deck above and opened the nearest door which apparently opened directly into the kitchen. Addy could smell food that had recently been cooked in here. It smelled divine. They might genuinely be the best cooks in the world and that was saying something.

"Hey," Usopp said.

"What?" Addy asked.

"You know how that pirate came in half starving, said his crew was attacked and starving."

"Yeah."

"You don't think that these people would actually feed them, would they?"

"If they did, than we might have a bigger problem than we realize."


	22. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _So I started going back over previous chapters and editing them, correcting spelling mistakes and so on. Otherwise the story is progressing smoothly. This is based on episode 23 so we are almost half way done with this arc. As always please review._

 _This is the remastered version,_

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Wait Addy what do you mean?" Usopp asked.

She turned to look at him. "What I mean is that if they do feed his crew than the numbers are greatly against us. The cooks look like they could put up a decent fight in a pinch, particularly Sanji and Zeff, especially if Zeff is who I think he is."

"We can handle whatever they throw at us," Zoro said. "But what was that about Zeff?"

"It might just be coincidence but several years ago there was a pirate on the Grand Line. Went by the name of Red Leg Zeff. Garnered something of a reputation but left after about a year.

"You think that it might be the same person."

"For our sakes I would hope so. Would hate to have that guy as an enemy."

The three of them started making their way through the kitchens. It had gone quiet below meaning that the explosions had at least stopped. Addy could faintly hear voices speaking but she could not make out anything.

"So what is so special about this Zeff guy?" Zoro asked.

"Apparently, he is an expert at fighting without his hands. Absolutely refused to use them in battle. Though now it seems that he has only one good leg I am not sure that is true anymore. There was a rumor he had an accident at sea."

"Was he strong then?"

"People said that in his prime he could leave a footprint on iron if that means anything."

"This guy sounds scary," Usopp said. "Glad he is on our side. How do you know all this?"

"One thing to know about the Grand Line, news travels fast. The news might not necessarily be true, but it will travel fast."

They got out of the kitchens but not before Addy swiped a bottle of whiskey. No point in using some of her own supply when there was other available. They were making their way down the hallway quickly finding the stairs. Careful not to tip anyone off that they were there the group walked slowly. It was meant to be a surprise attack after all. As they were walking the conversation was getting louder so Addy could make out what they were saying.

"The one to be Pirate King, will be me," Luffy said, his voice steady.

"Well I think I figured out what they were talking about," Addy whispered. "Want to let Luffy handle it?"

"Unless he says otherwise," Zoro said.

"You're no match for him," Patty called out. Oh yeah, they were totally leaving this to Luffy. Perhaps this would be how they would end up paying the restaurant back.

"I can't do that. Leaving things as they are," Luffy stated.

The three of them stopped on the stairs where they could overlook the restaurant. Zoro was ahead of Addy while Usopp was behind her. The place looked like a disaster, tables were overturned, bullet holes in the wall. Several of the cooks were bleeding. Addy was unsure where all the guns came from, the cooks didn't look like they carried any weapons. She also spotted a large bag, stuffed to the brim. Given the state of the kitchen, that was probably food.

Don Krieg looked at lot healthier than previously. He was now wearing what looked like a gold chest piece with shoulder pads and braces. What was with them and meeting people obsessed with gold?"

"What did you say boy?" Don Krieg asked. "I'll pretend I didn't hear that."

"You don't have too," Luffy said. "I'm just announcing the truth."

He was pissing Don Krieg off more and more with each sentence. "This is no game," Don Krieg said.

"Of course it isn't. I'll be the one who'll get to the Grand Line."

"That's not funny brat! It may have just been a lack of information, but even a fleet of 5000 thousand men was defeated in seven days. What makes you think you can make it?" The guy who came in previously looked like he was having a mental breakdown, kneeling on the floor clutching his head in between his hands.

"Wait they could not even survive a week in the Grand Line?" Addy whispered. "That is just sad. Never mind what I said previously, we will just walk over these guys."

"Shame," Zoro whispered. "I was hoping for a good fight."

"We haven't had one in a while not since the Bandit King's people. El Drago's people do not count."

"Which is a good thing." Usopp whispered. "Not running into powerful people who want to kill us is a good thing."

"Perhaps Luffy will be generous and let you fight Don Krieg," Addy whispered. "He might put up a challenge."

"No harm in asking," Zoro replied.

"Sorry, but your kind of humor is the kind I hate the most," Don Krieg said. "If you insist, shall I kill you off right now?"

"If you think you're up to it?" Luffy said. He wasn't even phased by Don Krieg. Luffy pulled his arm back, preparing for his signature move.

"Very well then. You want to be sent to the next world?" Don Krieg shoulder plates started spinning revealing guns underneath. So that is where the bullets came from. Luffy being well Luffy did not even blink as everyone else stepped back in fear.

"Our turn," Zoro whispered unsheathing his sword slightly. It was the one in the white sheath, a beautiful sword. The sound of the blade echoed through the room. Addy uncoiled her whip. Might as well look as dramatic as possible. Usopp was trembling but he struck a confident pose as well.

"Starting a brawl Luffy?" Zoro asked. "Need a hand?" He leaned forward, changing his stance into a striking positon. He was eager for a fight.

"W-we don't have to, y-you know," Ussop said.

"Sure we do," Addy said. "If Captain wants us."

"Zoro, Addy, Usopp! You dropped by!" Luffy said. He turned his head towards the three of them. "It's okay. Just sit and watch."

Addy recoiled her whip and placed it back on her belt, though she whined in disappointment. Zoro sheathed his sword placing it back on his hip.

"Oh, okay…. That's too bad then," Usopp said. He sounded so relieved. "If you don't need us, there's nothing we can do about that. I- I'll help ya, if you still need it. G-good luck." Addy ducked as Zoro slammed his elbow into him, shutting Usopp up. He fell backwards into the wall.

Don Krieg looked mystified, not that Addy blamed him. They were an odd bunch.

"What the hell was that for Zoro?!" Usopp yelled at him. "And you," he pointed towards Addy. "Why didn't you stop him?"

"Shut up and stay still," Zoro commanded.

Don Krieg started laughing and Addy was immensely tempted to break orders and run up to punch him in the face.

"Are those your men?" Don Krieg asked. What did one of them need to get their mark tattooed on their bodies or something? Of course, they were Luffy's nakama. "Are they all you've got with you?"

"What're you talking about," Luffy asked. "There are two more." He held up two fingers.

"Three," Addy called down. "You forgot Merry."

"Thanks Addy, three." He lifted up one more finger.

"Hey, why do you keep counting me in," Sanji yelled out from the bottom of the stairs. Because you are basically nakama even if you haven't realized it yet.

"You count the ship as nakama?" Zoro asked.

"You don't?" she asked back. "Merry has hopes, dreams, feelings, just like the rest of us. Just because you can't hear them doesn't mean they are not present."

"I guess you would know. You are the helmsman."

In an unexpected move, Don Krieg placed the shoulder pads down again hiding the guns. "I'll take care of you guys later," he said. "Right now I need to feed my men." He lifted the massive bag over his shoulder with ease. "For those who don't wish to die, you'd better not be here when I return. The only things I want are the journal and this ship." He turned to walk out the door which was absolutely smashed in the explosion. "However, if you really want to throw your lives away." Addy tighten her grip on her whip and let out a soft growl. Who did this bastard think he was threatening them? He turned his head slightly to face them but kept his back to them. The arrogance, at least given them the respect to face them. "I'll have to go out of my way, but I'll be happy to send you to the bottom of the ocean." No that is where you will be going, if Addy had any say. She would just have to trust Luffy to get the job done. "Keep that in mind." With that he walked out the doorway towards his ship.

The man who basically carried him in was still trembling on the floor and the chefs were getting up. They were filled with unbridled rage, it came off of them in waves. All of them were going to fight tooth and nail for this ship, for their home.

"I'm sorry, Sanji," the man said. His head was bowed as if he could not bring himself to look Sanji in the eye. "I never would've imagined things to turn out this way."

"I don't need an apology from the likes of you fool!" Zeff said. They all turned towards him surprised. The man on the floor managed to bring his head up and Addy could see the dark circles under his eyes. "We are but cooks of this establishment. We'll feed anybody who comes along."

"That doesn't sound like a very good business policy," Addy said. "Particularly when you feed your enemies."

Zeff turned towards her glaring though luckily she was saved from his wrath by one of the chefs.

"Owner," Patty called out. "Why are you siding with Sanji? That woman is right." Good to know someone agrees with her. "What's going on here?"

"Yeah?" One of the other chefs called out. "This is all his fault. He's going to destroy your precious restaurant." He held up his arm and pointed directly at Sanji who was sitting at the bottom of the stairs.

"Shut the hell up, you stupid eggplant," Zeff roared. Everyone backed off after that even Addy. There was way more to this than she realized.

"Have you ever had the experience of starving to death?" The room was silent, even Luffy was quiet. "Can you imagine how horrible that is?" The click of Sanji lighter startled Addy and she turned to look at him. "Having no food or water in this vast ocean?"

"Wh-what do you mean Owner?" Patty asked breaking Zeff monologue.

"The difference between all of you and Sanji is that he knows that feeling," Zeff finished.

Addy was lost in her thoughts but feelings of loss and death overcame her. Ocean could bring life as well as death. But for her the sea was everything, a fundamental part of her.

"As for you," Zeff said turning towards her. "I will let your comment pass. How can you possibly know anyway? You are Amora's granddaughter after all."

"You know my grandmother," Addy asked surprise. "How?"

"I should, she is an investor in this place. Also you don't keep yourself that well-hidden, if someone knows what to look for."

Addy gulped. This was the last thing she wanted.

"What does he mean?" Zoro asked.

"My grandmother is a merchant," Addy answered. "She must have run into him while he was on the Grand Line."

"That is not what I…."

"Rather than just standing idle with petty talk," Zeff interrupted. "You'd all better leave this place now."

There was some hesitation among the cooks. The battle lust had died somewhat. Zoro looked at her questioningly. Addy shook her head, eyes begging him not to ask. He backed off slightly and held his hands up in surrender. She almost crumpled with relief. She would have to be more careful in the future to not slip up and let people know who she was, particularly on the Grand Line. Not that she would have minded them knowing… it just makes things complicated and people tend to have various reactions.

"I'm staying here to fight," Patty said gripping his weapon tightly in his hands. "I can't let them trample over me!" He slammed the fork into the ground.

"Me too," another one called out. "This is where I work!"

"I have no place to go anyway," a third chef said. The rest picked up their weapons ready for battle whatever the outcome may be.

The man on the floor looked around in shock and fear, shaking his head. He slammed his hands on the ground and shouted, "What are you doing?!" They all turned to face him. "Didn't you see how strong our leader is?"

"Hey, Gin," Sanji said. Finally, a name. "Feeding the hungry is what being a cook is all about." He stepped on the leg of one of the fallen tables. "However…" He used his leg to stand it right back up, turning his body so that he was sitting on it. The guy had some fancy legwork. Addy briefly wondered how good of a dancer he was. "Now that your captain's all filled up, he's nothing more than a plunderer. Whatever I do to your pals, don't come bitching to me. I'll kill anybody who tries to take this restaurant! Even you! " He looked like he meant every word. A dark aura seem to overcome him. The smell of his cigarette smoke adding to his words. If she was a guy, Addy certainly would not want to meet him in a dark alley. "Got, that?"

Gin look terrified, though for himself or for them Addy was unsure on. Not that it really mattered. This wasn't their fight. At least not currently, Luffy hadn't made the call yet. It probably would be better for them if they didn't get involved. When Don Krieg did take over the ship Sanji would have nowhere else to go but with them.

"Heh! You saved his life just to kill him off," Patty scoffed. "You're so thoughtful Sanji."

"Didn't I tell you he was something?" Luffy said. He was looking towards the three of them. Addy hummed in agreement.

"Who cares about him now?" Usopp yelled. He was kneeling down and gripping the bars of the staircase with both hands. Addy could feel him vibrating the air from how nervous he was. "Let's just get the hell out of here!"

"Calm down," Zoro said. "Even though he's Krieg, he's all battered up."

"Is this guy really that much of a threat?" Addy asked.

"His bounty is 17,000,000," Zoro answered. That was more than the Bandit King and he was actually a tough opponent. Perhaps Addy should be more worried than she thought previously.

"Gin," Luffy called out. "You said once before that you knew nothing about the Grand Line, right? But you have been there, haven't you?" Luffy was still surprising her. Sometimes he was as dumb as a brick and other times he manages to ask all the right questions.

Gin looked absolutely terrified as if he was reliving his worst nightmare. He stared back down at the floor before chocking out, "The truth is I don't know anything. What happened on the Grand Line on the seventh day… was it a dream." Sweat was dripping down his face. "Or reality? It's still fresh in my mind. It was unbelievable. Just one man… destroyed a fleet of 50 ships." So they ran into someone way more powerful than them on the Grand Line. Addy could understand why that would be shocking, she still wasn't sure how they were going to handle it when it happened to them. The only question in her mind is who was it? Everyone else was shocked, looks of fear passed over their faces. Usopp was screaming and even Luffy and Zoro looked unnerved. Luffy was not exactly screaming but the sounds clearly coming from him were of panic.

"WHAT?!" everyone yelled with the exception of Addy.

"It happened so suddenly," Gin continued. "He showed up out of nowhere and started sinking our ships one after the other. If a storm hadn't come along, our maiden ship would have been destroyed too." So Wind and Ocean decided to have mercy on them then. Interesting. "I have no idea how many of my mate's ships have survived. But it was too scary for me to accept it all. I don't want to even think about what happened. That man… his stare pierces through you." Wait, it can't be… "Like the eyes of a hawk."

"What?" Zoro said leaning forward and gripping the railing. Addy looked at him curiously. Sweat was dripping off of him now. "What did you say?" His whole body was tense and he held the railing in a death grip. Addy was certain it was going to break.

"That guy," Zeff said. "He must be the man known as Hawk Eyes."

Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, Addy thought. Her brain was in a complete whirl. She glugged down some of the whiskey she stole from the kitchens. There was no way they could take on Mihawk. He would tear them apart in seconds. They needed to get out of here and the needed to get out now. They were so not ready to take on a Shichibukai, particularly him. Ocean dammit it why him of all people? All of them would need more training before they would be able to take down one of those government dogs. Any second now he could show up to finish the job he started and they would get caught in the cross fire.

"The fact that you noticed his eyes," Zeff continued but Addy was barely paying attention helping Usopp up. She had him in a death grip. "Leads me to believe it was him." Zoro was trembling. Addy had never seen him like this. But her concern was trampled by her need to get going. She could figure out what was bothering him later. Right now leaving was a priority.

"Zoro," she said. "We need to go, now."

He ignored her lost in his own head. "The Hawk Eyes Man!" Zoro said.

"Eh," Luffy said looking up. "You know that guy Zoro?"

Luffy's voice seemed to have snapped him out of whatever spell he was under. Zoro was back to his normal self. At least he was no longer killing the railing. "That's the man I have been looking for," Zoro said. What? "I sailed across the oceans looking for him."

"Maybe he had some kind of grudge to settle with you guys," Sanji said.

"Not that I know of," Gin replied.

"Perhaps you disturbed his nap," Zeff answered.

"Stop the bullshit," Gin yelled. "Why in the world would he destroy our fleet for that?!"

"Don't get so worked up. I'm just making assumptions. Stuff like that happens in the Grand Line."

"Just what kind of place is that?" Usopp asked.

"A place where anything can happen," Zoro answered.

"Addy is that true?" Usopp asked her.

"I have basically lived in the Grand Line all my life and it still throws surprises at me. It is where the impossible becomes reality," Addy replied. Something was still bugging her though. Why would Zoro want to meet Mihawk? She would ask him once they were far far away from this place.

"Hey Luffy," Usopp called out. He was shaking again. "Stop this right now! We can't go there!" Addy looked down at her captain. He was now trembling and what sounded like whimpers were coming off of him. "Luffy?"

"Captain?" Addy called down letting Usopp go.

"Gah! I'm so pumped up!" Luffy said fists clenched and a massive grin on his face. Addy smiled and her worries evaporated. "I was hoping the Grand Line would have all of this!"

"Can you be more concerned about your safety?" Usopp asked him.

"I don't think Captain has a single drop of self-preservation in his body," Addy answered. "But why does that matter? Everything lies in the Grand Line."

"But with all this talk, now my destination will really be the Grand Line," Zoro said.

Addy once again turned towards him. "It wasn't before?"

Zoro leaned back against the column that the staircase was wrapped around. "That man…" he said. "I can definitely meet him there."

"Zoro," Addy said. "I took you for many things, suicidal not being one of them."

"Are you morons?" Sanji asked. Addy quickly pivoted towards him sending him a glare. "You must be those eager to die."

"That's right," Zoro said. "But it's none of your business. When I decided to become the greatest swordsman in the world, I threw away the rest of my life." Ah so that is why he wants to meet Mihawk. Makes complete sense now. Though he is still nowhere near Mihawk's league. "I'm the only one who can say that I'm an idiot." Addy gripped her locket. He was like her. Once he made that choice, everything else became pointless. That she could understand. The only thing that mattered now was upholding that promise that Riley and her made. Her life, her dreams they did not matter as long as her nakama accomplished there's. Then she could join Riley. If her dream also happened to come true, well maybe then there was some luck on her side.

Sanji and Zoro entered a staring completion. Each looking at each other with mistrust.

"Me too, me too," Luffy yelled taking Addy out of her thoughts.

"You can count me in that as well," Addy said smiling at Zoro. Zoro smiled back at her and she felt giddy. Perhaps she should listen to Merry after all.

"As a man of the sea, same here," Usopp said. Zoro knocked him in the head with a sheath.

"Cut the lying," he said but Addy could see the faint traces of a smile. Like the rest of the Straw Hats Usopp believed in his dream too.

"Hey, hey," Patty said. "Do you bastards realize what is going on here? Don Krieg ship is right in front of the restaurant. Do all the talking after we get out of this mess."

"Oh that's right. Don Krieg is going to attack," Addy said.

"You forgot?" Usopp asked her.

"I had other more important stuff on my mind." With all the Mihawk drama it completely slipped that Don Krieg was here. "Whatever, Captain we should get going. We need to leave."

"But I haven't paid them back for the roof yet," Luffy answered.

Addy face palmed. "Captain… we are pirates. We don't need to pay for their damn roof. It's the Marines fault anyway that it got broken. And we need to leave before…" A bunch of loud screaming came from outside. Apparently Don Krieg decided that now would be a good time to attack. Excellent they could slip away in the chaos.

Suddenly a loud piecing scream echoed through the air. It was unearthly ghastly noise and Addy knew it was too late. She felt the disturbance of Ocean and that sound. That sound was of a ship dying, it's last call before fading away. Addy prayed that Merry was out of harm's way. Through the doorway Addy could see the ship sliced in half. Its parts breaking and sinking into Ocean taking supplies and crew down with it. As the waves from the wreckage crashed into the Baratie Addy was the only one who managed to keep balance. Her face was completely impassive and her hand on her whip. If she was meant to face a Shichibukai than she would go down fighting. Only one thing could have caused the destruction outside given the circumstances. He was here.

Luffy ran out the door as quickly as he could. Zoro and Usopp leaning forward off the railing.

"This is bad," Zoro said. "Nami, Yosaku and Johnny are still on our ship."

That brought Addy back to earth. She focused to see if she could hear Merry's voice but there was nothing. She vaguely got the sense that Baratie was cursing up a storm but Merry was quiet. Which could either be a very good or very bad thing. Both her and Zoro leapt off from the staircase and landed on the floor below. They were blocked by the crowd watching the ship sink into Ocean. Luffy was standing right next to them looking as surprised as the rest of them.

"Zoro," she heard Johnny call out. She turned to see them swimming towards them. Her heart leapt up in her throat. No, no, no, no, no…. Nami….. Merry….

The four of them ran towards the two in the water a few feet away from the entrance. Forget the fact that he is a Shichibukai if Mihawk hurt Nami or Merry than she was going to kill him. Or at least beat him to a bloody pulp then let Zoro kill him and claim the title.

"Where's the ship and Nami?" Zoro called down.

Addy was in too much of a panic draining the rest of the bottle until there was nothing left. Clutching the railing of the ship like her life depended on it.

"She's… I am sorry Zoro," Johnny answered. Mihawk was dead and so was Don Krieg for bringing him here. Ocean would be soaked with blood by the time she was through. "She left."

Wait she left? Apparently Addy said that out loud because Yosaku responded to her. "Yes, she left with the Merry and took all the treasure with her."

Addy thought about it for a second and reacted accordingly. "WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY?" she yelled out simultaneously with her other crew mates. If it wasn't one thing it was another.

"It's him," Zeff said. Addy and Zoro turned to face him before looking out over the ocean. Zoro's eyes went wide as he strained himself looking around.

When Addy spotted him, she felt like her heart had stopped. He sat in his coffin shaped boat, the green candles glowing on either side. With the cross shaped mast and the black sails, it was a testament to his strength that he was able to sail the Grand Line on such a ship. Addy thought she could feel his yellow eyes all the way from here. Addy had only met him once before, very briefly when her mother stopped to meet up with Shanks one time and he happened to be there. He scared her then and he scared her now. David said that she had good instincts but that Mihawk was not like the other Shichibuka. He actually had a code of honor and to earn his respect was a great achievement.

Mihawk looked exactly the same as he did that day when she saw him last. A wide brimmed black hat donned on his head decorated with a large plume. His long open black coat with red floral sleeves only added to his domineering appearance. The black blade Yoru nestled safely on his back.

"It can't be," Zoro said looking as terrified as she did. Sweat was dripping down his face and he was shaking as badly as Usopp normally did. "He is… the man with the Hawk Eyes."

"The Greatest Swordsman in the World," Addy said. Yep absolutely nothing was going her way today.


	23. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is based on episode 24 of the anime so we are half way through the arc. Things are going to take a different turn from here on out so be prepared. As always please review._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

After fishing Yosaku and Johnny out of the water they collapsed on the deck panting. As long as they did not attack Mihawk hopefully he would leave them alone. If they were lucky. Right now there were other things to be concerned about.

Zoro and Addy were standing over Yosaku and Johnny while Usopp and Luffy were kneeling. The two of them basically joined at the hip. "What did you say!?" Usopp yelled at them.

"Nami ran off with the Going Merry?" Luffy asked.

Zoro crowded around them as well, essentially smashing Luffy in between him and Usopp. "What exactly happened?" he asked.

Addy jumped to the other side of the two bounty hunters so as not to be smushed. Taking a drink from her flask, she leaned down towards them. "Tell us everything, don't leave out any details," she said her voice calm.

"Everything happened so suddenly," Yosaku said water dripping down his face. "One minute she was looking over the bounty list… and the next she shoved us off the ship." Addy felt like they were leaving something out but decided not to press it. "She said she was a thief of pirates and that she was going to take the ship. That she was only cooperating with you guys and although her relationship with you was short she enjoyed it." Apparently not enough to not run off with Merry, "She said to tell you that. She also said that if you are meant to be together you will meet up again." Oh there was no question about that. They had to get Merry back after all. "Then she sailed off and the giant ship was cut into pieces." Yosaku and Johnny got up and bowed before the four of them. "And that is how we lost the ship."

"Forgive us," Johnny said.

"Damn! She took advantage of us," Zoro said hitting the wall of Baratie.

"That ship was given by Kaya," Usopp growled. He was mad, the maddest Addy had ever seen him.

"Before we jump to conclusions I think there is more going on here then we realize," Addy said.

"Hold up! I can see it," Luffy called out. He was standing on the railing looking out over the sea.

Addy perked her ears to see if she could hear Merry's voice. Sure enough she could barely hear it over the sound of everything else.

" _What are you doing? Where are we going? What about the others? Nami please stop. We can't leave them. There our nakama. They could be in trouble. Addy…. ADDY. If you can hear me then stop her. I don't know what's wrong."_

"Where's your ship?" Luffy asked Jonny and Yosaku.

"We still have it but…." Yosaku said.

"Zoro, Addy, Usopp, leave right away." Luffy said turning towards them. "Fetch Nami using their ship."

"Never mind. Let it go," Zoro said. Addy turned towards him bewildered. Was he really going to disobey an order? "There is no need to chase that women."

"I can't be without her as my navigator," Luffy said. He gave a hard stare towards Zoro. There almost seemed to be a silent communication between the two of them before Zoro caved.

"Fine!" Zoro grumbled. "What a pain-in-the-ass captain. Addy, Usopp, let's go."

"You wait here. I will go get the ship," Addy said a minute before diving into the water. It didn't take long to sense out the ship being one of the few left around. She glided through the water careful to avoid the debris and Mihawk.

The water was warm and calm against her skin unlike the roughness that the water of the Grand Line usually exhibited. It was also crystal clear, anyone could see for miles. It didn't take long for Addy to find the ship, it was one of the few around. Despite the circumstances she hesitated getting out of the water. She always felt ungraceful on land after swimming. Guiding the ship back to her nakama her mind was ablaze with questions. Why would Nami do this? What would she hope to gain? She docked the ship near the others and dropped the anchor.

"Our ride awaits," she called out. Johnny and Yosaku jumped on.

"Luffy what about you?" Zoro asked turning towards Luffy who got off the railing at some point and was standing behind Zoro.

"I haven't fully repaid this restaurant yet, so I can't go," he replied.

"Do be careful. Things here are abnormal."

"Yeah, I know. Addy?"

"Yes Captain?" she asked him.

"Sail as fast as you can, don't let anything slow you down."

"Understood."

"The man who destroyed our fleet," one of the Don Krieg pirates called out causing the Straw Hats to turn towards the commotion.

"Zoro, Usopp we need to leave. Now," Addy said. Each moment they stayed the more danger they were in.

"That man is…." Zoro said. Sweat started dripping down him again. Addy swore she could hear his heart beat. "That man is…."

"Exceedingly dangerous," Addy said. "Let's move."

"Who is that?" Luffy asked.

"The man I have been searching for," Zoro said. No. They did not have time for this. With each second Merry was getting farther and farther away. "Hawk Eyes Mihawk."

"Hawk Eyes Mihawk," Luffy repeated.

"The Strongest Swordsman in the World." Zoro reached for his white blade and he grinned. The same grin he had when he fought a challenging opponent and Addy felt her stomach drop.

"You're serious aren't you?" she asked Zoro. Her body was trembling. "He will kill you. Without hesitation. Without mercy."

"Not if I defeat him first." Addy kept quiet after that. There was no talking him out of it. She sighed and resigned herself. If she was going to have to watch him die than so be it. Least she could do is support him until the end. She got up and out of the ship jumping back on the dock. Addy walked towards him and placed her hands on his shoulders. His bright green eyes looking at her unblinking.

"Good luck," she said. "Make him bleed."

"Will do so." He seemed to lean forward close to her for a moment hovering over her. There was barely any distance between them. If Addy lifted her head up slightly their lips would be brushing. After a moment however the two of them stepped away from each other and Zoro ran off in Mihawk's direction hopping across debris.

"What was that about?" Usopp asked her, but she just stared at the direction he disappeared off to.

"Captain," she said breaking her silence. "Want to get a better view of the battle?"

He nodded. No other words needed to be spoken. Together all of them got on the ship and sailed out into Ocean where they could look out and watch Zoro fight with every drop of strength he had.

Addy watched from a distance as he wrapped the bandanna around his head, marking the start of the battle. He drew out the white blade and lifted it in front of him, the metal glittering in the sun.

"Hey," Usopp said. "Things are getting worse. Going Merry is about to be gone from our sights."

"Don't worry Usopp," Addy said. "I will be able to find Merry no matter how far she travels. Now watch." Usopp became silent and turned towards what Luffy and Addy were looking at. Mihawk had yet to come out of his ship but Addy knew it would be any minute now.

In the blink of an eye, so fast that Addy barely caught it, Mihawk moved off his ship and onto the piece of debris where Zoro was standing. Zoro turned to face him putting his blade down by his side. He then drew his two other blades but not before nestling the white one tightly in his mouth.

"No one can win against Zoro," Yosaku said. Addy was unsure about that. Zoro was an absolute monster in combat but Mihawk… Mihawk was something else entirely.

"Zoro's the best," Johnny said.

She turned her attention back to Mihawk to see him take the cross of his neck only for it to become a tiny sword. It could just be considered a pocket knife. It was then that Zoro charged bringing all three of his swords up to strike Mihawk down. Only for them to be stopped by that tiny blade.

"Zoro," Luffy said.

"Ocean curse it," Addy said.

"Zoro's demon technique was broken," Johnny said.

"But, that has always worked 100% of the time," Yosaku added in. "What in the world happened?" Addy could see the fear that was on their faces. Luffy had a similar look though it was much more restrained. They could feel the tension in the air and it was about to reach a breaking point.

Suddenly Zoro was moving like Wind. Various strikes, slashed and jabs all aimed a Mihawk but he blocked them all with his blade. He barely even moved except for his arm. He was keeping up with Zoro with ease. It was nothing more than a game if even that.

At one point they flipped positions but that did not change anything. Mihawk was still completely dominating the fight. So much so that he managed to strike Zoro down so that he crashed onto the floor, rolling over a couple of times.

"This can't be happening," Yosaku said. "Please fight seriously."

"Zoro," Johnny yelled.

Zoro got back on his feet charging forward once again. His movements were even more wild, but all that did was cause Mihawk to have to back up until he hit the railing. Jumping up he landed perfectly on it and right before Zoro sliced into it he jumped towards the other side. It was turning into an elaborate move set with Mihawk able to predict every move that Zoro was about to make. What could only be described as a blast of energy emitted from the two of them, kicking up dust in the air. The entire world seem to be still, even Ocean was quiet as the only sound was that of swords blades clashing. Addy could almost taste the metal in the air.

There was nothing Zoro could do. Try as hard as he might, he could not land a single blow. Mihawk was that strong. Zoro's movements seemed to become more panic as the fight went on, skill falling to brute strength. One misplaced strike and Zoro was falling over again. Mihawk in what could be considered an act of mercy chopped the back of his neck. This time however Zoro managed to keep himself upright and once again turned to face his opponent. His breathing was heavy, Addy could tell that even from a distance. He would not last much longer. Zoro could barely lift his swords. When he went to attack Mihawk all he did was swerve out of the way before Zoro was falling over again.

"Get up Zoro," she whispered. "Get up and finish this like the swordsman you are." Addy drew the ship in even closer trying to see what condition Zoro was in. She was finally able to catch what Mihawk was saying.

"What's your mission? Why do you seek the ultimate power, you weakling?"

"Zoro a weakling you say?" Yosaku yelled out placing his hand on the hilt of his blade. "You damn bastard."

"I'll teach you a thing or two," Johnny yelled out. Both of them drew out their blades preparing to attack Mihawk. Addy unfurled her whip and slashed right in front of the two, keeping them from jumping off the boat. Luffy grabbed the back of their necks keeping them on the deck.

"Stop! Yosaku! Johnny!" he called out. "Don't interfere. Just hang on." Luffy was sweating as much as Zoro was and Addy could see the anger bristling in his eyes as he kept the two of them down.

Addy stared at them smoldering angry in her eyes. Her posture stiff and rigid. "Try to interfere in this fight and I will kill you," she said. That seemed to keep them still as they stopped struggling.

Zoro once again struggled to his feet. "I can't afford to lose," he said. He drew his two swords and placed them behind the white blade in his mouth. "Tora Gari." However instead of blocking this move like he did all the others Mihawk just reached over and stabbed him in the chest. Time seemed to stand still. All the color seemed to fade from the world. Addy could smell the blood even at the distance. She could hear Zoro's heartbeat thumping in her ears. It was over, the battle was done.

"Do you wish to have this go through your heart?" Mihawk asked. "Why don't you step back?"

"I don't know," Zoro said. Blood was dripping down from his mouth. "I'm not sure why myself. But if I were to take even one step back, I believe that all those important oaths, promises, and many other deals 'til now, will all go to waste and I'll never be able to return before you ever again. "

"Yes, and that is called losing."

"That's why I can't step back."

"Even if it means death?"

"Death may be better."

Mihawk pulled the dagger out of Zoro blood trailing down forming a pool at their feet. Mihawk took a few steps back and sheathed the dagger.

"Kid, announce your name," he called to Zoro.

In one swift movement Zoro brought his two swords in front of him, rotating them at an angle against each other. One facing up, the other down. "Roronoa Zoro."

"I'll remember that." Addy gasped as Mihawk reached for his black blade. To think that he would consider Zoro worthy enough. "It's been awhile since I've seen such strong will. As a reward…." He drew the black blade. Addy could feel it slice the very air itself. The sword that could cut through anything. "A gesture to a fellow swordsman, I will wield the Black Sword, the most powerful sword in the world to end your life."

"I appreciate your offer."

Luffy was using everything in his power to hold himself back. Addy placed a hand on his shoulder to still him. She would not even let him interfere. He looked at her and she at him. She moved her hand from his shoulder to his hand and together they turned back towards Zoro, hands clasped.

"That's enough Zoro," Johnny called out. "Please stop!"

"There is no stopping this," Addy said. "Death is acceptable when you are chasing your dreams."

"Santoryu Ogi." He started spinning the blades in his hands rotating them rapidly. So this was Santoryu ultimate technique. Addy was glad to have seen it before the end. Mihawk charged, the black blade glinting in the sun. "Sanzen…" he did not get a chance to finish. Mihawk cut straight through him destroying the blades in his hands. Blood splattered and Ocean lapped it up. Zoro collapsed on one knee unable to support his weight. He took the blade out of his mouth and put it into its sheath. Whatever happened next Addy would make sure that sword would end up in the proper hands.

Zoro got up and turned towards Mihawk lifting his arms up and exposing his chest.

"A swordsman till the end," Addy said. Tears were glistening down. At this moment she really wished she had listened to Merry or at least gotten to know him better. Zoro… Zoro was someone special.

"What now?" Mihawk asked surprised. He probably never had one of his opponents do this before.

"Attacking from behind is a shameless act among swordsman," Zoro said his voice clear.

"Well said." In one move Mihawk sliced him and the blood ran free.

"ZORO!" Luffy screamed, as Zoro's remaining blade fell from his hands.

"ZORO!" Usopp yelled as Zoro started to fall backwards.

"ZORO!" The bounty hunters cried as more blood spilled from his wounds.

"Zoro," Addy cried as the sea claimed him. The battle was over. As soon as Zoro touched the water Addy dove in after him.

"Sorry, but you are not claiming this one," she said as she swam towards him rapidly. Like a bullet she shot through the water grabbing his sword as she swam. He had barley sunk below the surface before Addy grabbed him. Wrapping an arm around him she brought him to the surface praying that he would be alright.

She broke the surface without a splash even with her carrying Zoro. She could faintly hear him still breathing, and the rise and fall of his chest. Addy placed her hand over his heart, sensing it beating. He was alive but only just. Would not be much longer if they stayed in the water.

"Zoro!" Luffy called out. He was standing on the same platform that Mihawk was on.

"He's alive," she shouted. To prove her point he let out a cough, spitting out blood. She quickly got him back to the ship making sure that his head stayed above the water. With help from the three boys they managed to get Zoro back on the ship without further aggravating his injury.

Together the laid him across the ship putting his feet up along the edge.

"Here's some medicine," Usopp said handing Addy a roll of bandages and some ointment. "Use it quick." This would not nearly be enough. Zoro needed to see a damn doctor but it would at least keep him from dying.

In a desperate move Addy torn off his shirt to gain access to his wounds. She could hear the others gasp and she pretty sure she saw Yosaku and Johnny run off and vomit in Ocean.

Zoro was essentially sliced in half from his left shoulder to his right hip. Blood tricking down covering everything. Addy could feel it soaking into her clothes. There was no way in hell that wasn't going to scar. She slathered on as much ointment as possible before wrapping him in bandages but it was like putting a band aid on a bullet wound. She might as well kiss it better.

Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku started hovering over her as she treated him trying to get him to wake up. Not for the first time she cursed herself for not having her mother's healing talent as she tried bandaging him.

"It's still too early for you to die," Mihawk said. "My name is Dracule Mihawk. Find your true self, true world, become stronger. No matter how long it will take I will await you in my strongest form." Addy stared at Zoro amazement in her eyes and a smile on her lips. So out of everyone Mihawk has faced he has chosen Zoro as his successor to the title. "Surpass this sword! Surpass me! Roronoa Zoro!" Mihawk turned towards Luffy who was sitting down on the debris. "Kid what's your mission?"

"Pirate King!"

"That's a difficult path, harder than surpassing me."

"Like I care coz I'm gonna become one anyway." Out of defiance he stuck his tongue out at Mihawk.

It was then that Zoro started to regain consciousness. Addy could see him slowly open his eyes, feel his body tremble before her touches. She handed him his blade, knowing that he would not be able to relax without it. He grabbed the handle and pulled it out of it's sheath. Using the last of his energy he raised the sword above his head. Addy shifted positions so that Luffy could get a clear view of his first mate. She lifted Zoro's head up and placed it on her lap so that he could also see his captain.

"Luffy, can you hear me?" he asked.

"Yeah," Luffy called back.

"Sorry for worrying you. If I don't become the greatest swordsman in the world you'd be in a dilemma now right? " Luffy was staring at the ship but Addy knew all his attention was on Zoro. Zoro started hacking up blood and Yosaku and Johnny tried to keep him from talking but Addy held her whip up. This was between first mate and captain.

"I will….I will never…. LOSE AGAIN." Tears were streaming down his face unabashedly. "Until I defeat him and become the greatest swordsman. I'll never be defeated anymore. Any problems with that Pirate King?"

Luffy started laughing his trademark laugh, "None," he said his voice loud and clear.

"Good team," Mihawk said. "Looks like you got your work cut out for you daughter of Sarabi."

"You have no idea," Addy called back wiping the tears of Zoro's face. "My captain is good about keeping us in trouble."

"I hope we meet again," Mihawk said. Addy had a feeling he was talking to each of them. He started walking back towards his ship. His job here was done.

Addy turned her attention back on Zoro and trying to stop the blood flowing. An explosion rocked the ship as Don Krieg decide it would be a genius move to attack Mihawk.

"Addy, Usopp, get going," Luffy called out. "Take care of Nami."

"Gotcha," Usopp called out. "Me, Zoro and Addy will definitely get Nami back. You just make that cook one of us. Then we'll be a party of five and head to the Grand Line." Usopp tossed Luffy his straw hat and Luffy caught it deftly in the air.

"Yeah! Now go!"

"You got it Captain," Addy called out. Gently putting Zoro down she took control of the rudder, guiding them towards the current that the Merry was riding on. If she listened carefully she could just make out Merry's voice but it was faint. They had lost a lot of time but that would not matter. They would find Merry, figure out what was going on with Nami and sail towards the Grand Line. It was smooth skies ahead.


	24. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 7

_Author's Note:_

 _Okay because One Piece is so long and at the rate this story is going it will be forever until we reach the Grand Line much less the time skip I am going to update every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, hopefully from now on. Also I only just noticed that for the first several chapters I have spelled Usopp's name incorrectly. I am still debating whether or not to go change it or leave it as it is (Spoilers I did go back in fix it). Thank you for all the reviews I have been getting. I really appreciate them. Keep them coming. THis chapter is sort of based on episode 25 in that it takes place in the same time period. Let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

It would be smooth skies ahead if there wasn't a chance of Zoro bleeding out.

"Zoro," Addy cried as he started coughing up blood again. "Stay still." He was struggling to sit up fighting against the boys who were keeping him down. Addy walked over and gently pressed her palm against his chest easing him down. She took one of the bottles in the medicine kit that Usopp brought. Bright blue with an opaque liquid. Swirling the medicine around a bit, she tipped Zoro's head back bringing the bottle to his lips. After drinking some of it, he seemed to slump in her arms.

"That will keep him from moving around too much," Addy said gently putting him back on the deck. See could just make out Baratie in the distance. They were making good time.

"Addy you sure that we are going the right way," Usopp asked her.

Addy closed her eyes focusing her energy on hearing Merry. She could make out her voice though not the words. It was slightly louder than before.

"I'm sure," Addy said. "Johnny, Yosaku."

"Yes Addy," they said simultaneously.

"Go find a map and try to figure out where Nami is going. She seems to be heading straight in this direction. Perhaps we can cut her off somewhere." The two of them scurried off below deck somewhere looking for a map.

Addy sighed. She could feel a headache rising. Taking a shot out of her flask, she looked out over Ocean. She tried to get up but Zoro started squirming. The last thing she wanted was for him to start bleeding again so she stayed by his side holding his hand. That seemed to calm him enough.

"I think he likes you," Usopp said.

"You don't say," Addy replied. "Tell me what makes you think that.

"I just sort of know these things. When your back is turned he looks at you like the way I look at Kaya."

"You must miss her."

"I do… but being out here. On the open ocean, it's worth it. And think about how many stories I will be able to tell her when I get back."

"Right and they will have the extra bonus of actually being true."

"Hey!"

The two of them broke out into light laughter. Usopp moved towards Zoro's other side and grabbed his other hand. Together the two of the shifted so that their shoulders were touching and linked their hands. Usopp's hand was warm, sweaty and smooth compared to Zoro's cold and calloused palm.

"How did Mihawk know you?" Usopp asked. "And who is Sarabi?"

"My mother," Addy answered, her voice tinged with sadness. "But I guess you already knew that. She was a famous pirate before retiring a little over a year ago. And by famous I mean really famous, she was formerly Gol D. Rogers helmsman."

Usopp eyes got wide at that. "So she must be pretty powerful then."

"You have no idea. My mother is a prodigy. If I trained all my life I might become half as powerful as she is."

"But you said she retired."

"Yeah…. There was an incident about a year ago, she was forced to hang up the black flag. Not long after that I asked her to leave me in East Blue."

"So what is she doing now?"

"Oh probably going on adventures, exploring mysterious islands, collecting treasure, running from Marines who still want to capture her. It's how I know Mihawk. You tend to meet a lot of people when you travel with my mother."

"You must miss her a lot. Perhaps we will run into her on the Grand Line."

"I hope not," Addy said softly.

"Huh?"

"We aren't exactly on the best of terms right now."

"Ah, does it have to deal with the incident?"

"Yes." Addy sighed, her body slightly trembling. Addy took another shot out of her flask, trying to drown out her dark thoughts. What would he think if she told him what really happened? That it was her fault her mother was forced to retire. That she could never go back. She could feel Usopp's grip on her tighten. It was an anchor. An anchor of light and warmth. It was at that moment she realized that she didn't have to say anything. They were nakama, no matter what.

The two of them sat quietly for a while, watching Zoro breath, steady, deep, strong. Waves lapped at the ship as it sailed across the sea. Seagulls chattered in the air. A warm breeze blew over them, bringing in the smell of the sea. Occasionally Addy changed their course in accordance with Merry's voice, being careful not to take to long. She was getting louder. They were catching up. Where was that damn map?

There was a crash below decks. What were those idiots doing? They had been down there for an half an hour.

"I'll go see," Usopp said. He extracted himself from Zoro's grip and went down below.

Addy and Zoro were left alone on the deck. She moved her hand to his throat to check his pulse. It was slightly weak but still going strong. Zoro would pull through, even with her patch up bandaging.

"Addy," he groaned out. One eye of his opened blearily.

She shook her head. "You should still be asleep. Here drink this." She grabbed a different bottle this time. Small and brown with a clear liquid inside.

"Don't want drugs… mess with my… senses."

"Zoro you are not going to be fighting anytime soon. Not that it is probably going to stop you. It's only something for pain relief."

"Not in…pain."

"Have you been getting lessons from Usopp? You have two choices here, either you take this willingly or I force it down your throat. Which would you prefer?"

Zoro did not answer but shot her a glare. Addy helped him sit up, leaning him against her, his back resting against her chest. She brought the bottle to his lips and he gulped it down. His body shuddered and his head collapsed onto her shoulder. Addy looked at him and he turned his head towards here. His pupils were dilated and unblinking. The drug worked quickly. Knowing Zoro however it would probably only last an hour instead of its intended 8.

"You're hot," he said, his voice slurred slightly.

"You think," Addy said. Laughing at the situation. Oh she was going to use this for all this is worth.

"Mmm like ever since I saw you fight I have wanted to screw you against a wall. You would look so hot under me."

"If you think I would let you top without a fight you have another thing coming. I am not like any of the other girls you have slept with."

"Haven't done anything… with any other girls."

"Guys then, don't worry I won't judge."

"Not any guys either."

Addy stared at him. "Well surely you must have at least kissed someone, or experienced attraction."

Zoro stared at her like she was an idiot. "I said. I haven't done nothing. There have been hot girls, some hotter than you."

"Well that makes me warm and fuzzy."

"But they would be a distraction, take away from training."

Addy looked dumbstruck. What was with her and finding hot virgin men? "And I don't?"

"No… you.. you.. you get it. You give while others take. You know?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"You push me to be better, like Luffy does. And the others as well. Plus you're strong…. A lot of girls are not."

"You're lucky I like you otherwise I will tell Nami you said that."

"You don't care that you're female…. You would do what you do even if you were male or a goldfish or something…" He started giggling which disturbed Addy significantly. She looked at the bottle and wondered if she gave him too much.

"Is that a compliment? If so that is the first time I have been complimented for being a girl."

"Plus your convenient, I mean were on the same crew, under the same captain. It would be easy."

"So why haven't you asked?"

Zoro shrugged. "No clue. You make me feel fuzzy in my brain. I guess that's why."

"Well I tell you what. Once we got Nami sorted out and you start to feel better we can have sex. Sound good?"

"Can we do it more than once?"

"Sure. We can be nakama with benefits. Honestly I could use the stress relief." She hesitated slightly before muttering under her breath. "And this time will be different. I won't make the same mistake again."

"What happened last time?"

Apparently Zoro still heard her. Her eyes went wide and she stared at him for a few moments before stumbling over her words. "I was busy with someone and instead of doing the mission that I was assigned to do Riley…. had to take my place." Addy felt like the air was constricting, like it was getting harder to breath. She gulped down some vodka from her flask but that did not help anything. Her heart was racing out of her chest, her body trembling like it was on vibrate. Sweat was pouring off of her skin and her world started spinning. Everything was numb. The world was closing in around her. Why, why, why, was she telling him?

Suddenly all she could see was darkness and she was enveloped by something warm. She breathed in and the scent of blood, steel and medical ointment washed over her. Addy wrapped her arms around the warmth as her body stilled and her breathing went back down to normal. The two of them stayed like that for several minutes before she let Zoro go. He looked at her worried. Still high as a kite but worried.

"Riley was your…" he asked unsure where the boundaries laid.

"She was my everything," Addy said taking out her locket and opening it. "This was taken about a year ago. It was the last picture we ever took together."

"She's gone isn't she?"

"Yes," Addy said closing her locket back up and placing the locket back under her clothes. The conversation was over. There was a loud bang from down stairs and Zoro looked up startled.

"What are those morons doing?" she asked. If it wasn't for Zoro she would get up and knock some sense into them. Chances are if she left, he would do something stupid. Like wander off the ship. Honestly it was one map. How long could it take to find? Did they not have one and they were just hiding their incompetence?

Usopp came up dusting something off of his clothing. He stared at the two of them and Addy only realized how close they were sitting. There was no space between them. Addy was basically in Zoro's lap.

"Um am I interrupting something?"

"No, not really," Addy said. "What is taking you so long to find a map?"

"Hey, you haven't been down there. It's like a freaking bomb went off."

"Your hair is really, really, really, poofy," Zoro stated pointing at Usopp and giggling.

Usopp looked like he was about to have a heart attack, staring at Zoro wide eyed. "What they hell is wrong with him?"

"He is just high off the pain medication I gave him. With his metabolism it should only last an hour… so 30 minutes more," Addy stated.

"Right…."

"Hey Usopp," said Zoro who was waving at him enthusiastically. Usopp waved back. "Don't you think Addy is hot?"

Usopp burst out laughing and Addy buried her hands in her head.

"Sure Zoro whatever you say," Usopp said still giggling. "Anyway I came up to ask if you knew where we are…"

Addy rattled off some coordinates. Usopp and Zoro turned to look at her. She looked back and forth between the two of them.

"Don't ask," she said. "I just know these things."

"Are you a Sea Goddess?" Zoro asked.

"NO!" Addy yelled. Usopp arched an eyebrow towards her.

"That was believable," Usopp said.

Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. She should have just gave Zoro more of the sleep medication. That way she could avoid all this. "Look I am not any type of goddess okay. I am who I am and that is all that matters."

"Okay," Zoro said cheerfully.

Usopp looked out over the sea. It seemed endless. "How far away from the Merry are we?" he asked.

"We are still a fair distance away but we are gaining." If Merry's voice was any indication. Addy could just make out a couple of words here or there. Merry seemed to be fighting Nami but there wasn't much that Merry could do. She was still young and her strengthen was only just beginning to develop.

"Where could she possibly be going?" Addy asked. Usopp disappeared back down, hopefully figuring out where she was going. Zoro wrapped his arms around her and buried his head in her shoulder. Apparently he was really cuddly when on drugs.

Addy stared across Ocean. She watched the movement along the surface, felt Wind catch in her hair. She breathed in the air tasting the salt on her tongue. Out here in the middle of sea nothing could touch her. If the rest of her nakama were here than everything would be perfect. Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, perhaps Sanji and Merry. Together forever.

"What are you thinking about?" Zoro asked.

"Nothing much, just wish everyone else was here," she replied.

"Mmm. It feels kinda lonely without them doesn't it. Like something is missing."

"Yeah…"

The two of them fell into silence again. Addy felt Zoro's breathing become more steady. His grip slackened. Addy chuckled. He had fallen asleep. Carefully moving him so that he did not wake up, she laid him down on the deck.

She looked around for a blanket but could not find one. Sighing she went down stairs below deck. The stairs creaked under her feet and she could hear the boys yelling. As she got to the bottom Addy stared. Usopp wasn't kidding.

It was like a tornado went through here. Papers were stacked next to barrels of water. Clothes randomly strewn about in piles. Books, compasses, and other knickknacks, thrown about randomly. There was barely any floor space not covered by something. Were these guys hoarders? No wonder it took them so long to find a map.

Carefully walking so that she would not step on anything she made her way to the source of the yelling. The three of them were standing over a table covered with dishes, paper, and what looked like hair products.

"What's going on?" Addy asked. The three of them jumped up. They slowly turned to face her, eyes shifty.

"Well you see Addy," Usopp started. "There has been an accident. This giant monstrous dragon, at least several feet tall, attacked us. We managed to fight it off before it burned the ship down but alas before we could slay it, the fire burned the map up."

"Usopp," she stated. "Where is she going?"

"Ah… you don't really need to know do you. I mean I'm sure we are going to meet up with her again."

Addy walked up to him and pressed a finger to his chest. "I will ask only one more time. Where is she going?"

"You're not going to like it."


	25. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 8

_Author's Note:_

 _So this chapter was supposed to come out Wednesday but because I accidentally updated Tuesday it is here now. Next week we will have an actual schedule. Also from now on after this chapter I am going to respond to any reviews I get after the end of the chapter. I will also try to answer any questions I get without giving away spoilers. This thing may be my baby but your the ones that are making it something. As always continue to review and let me know what you think._

 _This chapter is again sort of based on episode 26 in that the events are happening at the same time._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"She is going to a Marine base?" Addy asked shocked. Why would she eve do that? She did mention not liking pirates but still… To turn Merry into the Marines, that was an all-new kind of low.

"What?" Usopp asked confused. "Why would you think that?"

"You said I wouldn't like it."

"No…. here just look at the map."

Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku stepped away from the map. It was a map of East Blue though Addy could barely make that out. The paper was covered in various stains. Some that Addy could not identify. Figuring that she was better off not knowing she still could barely suppress a shudder. Nami would kill them if she saw this atrocity. Addy saw what they were pointing at, an archipelago. She could barely make out the name of the islands, it was half covered with a coffee stain, or what Addy hoped was a coffee stain.

"Conomi Islands?" she asked. "Alright so what is the big deal then? Are they haunted? Have a strong Marine base? Are infested with man eating bears? What's the problem here?"

"It's the home base of Arlong," Johnny said.

"Who?"

The three of them looked at her astonished.

"Arlong… Captain of the Arlong pirates," Yosaku said. "He made it through the Grand Line alive. Was a member of the same crew as Jimbe, one of the Shichibukai."

"Still don't know him."

"He has the highest bounty in East Blue. 20,000,000." Yosaku slapped down a bounty poster. "He has taken over 20 islands at least."

Addy leaned forward to look at it. Unlike the map it seemed like they took better care of it. Portrayed was what looked like sawshark fishmen. So that is what the problem was.

"Ah, I got the issue now." The others sighed in relief. "Don't worry though. While they are technically several times stronger than humans, they can still be defeated. Particularly if you catch them out of water. While fighting them might be difficult, it is still doable."

"Are you insane?" Usopp asked. "Who said anything about fighting them?"

"True I did sort of jump on that." Once again they simultaneously sighed in relief. "It could just be that Nami wants to steal from them and thought that we would get in her way. Which means that we still should head over to support her."

"Wait you plan on continuing?" Johnny asked.

"Of course. I still have to yell at Nami for taking Merry without Captain's permission."

"But..but… but the Fishmen," Usopp stuttered.

"Don't exactly scare me."

"Well you do breathe underwater. You're not one of them are you?"

"Do I look like a Fishmen to you?" She held up her arms and slowly turned around in a circle proving her point. Her blue cami showed off her muscular arms and broad shoulders while her white leggings showed off her legs. Addy had no shoes on, they always got in the way when she was swimming.

"No…" Yosaku said scratching his head. "Are you a mermaid then?"

"Don't make me hurt you," she said dropping her arms. "As I said before I am what I am. Now that we figured out where she is going, what is the fastest way to get there?" The three of them stood blinking at her.

Addy sighed and grabbed the map. No point in keeping it down here now that she had to navigate. Idiots… all of them. She headed back up the stairs, making sure to dodge all the junk on the floor.

Once she got back to the deck, she just stopped and stared. She felt someone run into her back from her sudden halt. Zoro was in the middle of the deck doing pushups.

"What the hell are you doing?!" she yelled. "Are you trying to kill yourself?!"

That stopped him in his tracks and he sat up groaning in the process. "Must get stronger," he spat out before leaning back and starting to do sit ups.

Addy walked over and grabbed his chin staring directly into his eyes. They were bright, clear and not the least bit foggy like they were before. What kind of monster was he? Ocean, Addy would hate being the doctor who had to treat him.

Addy turned and saw the three others staring at her. Looking at her for guidance. They were all screwed.

"Alright Zoro, stop doing stupid shit. You three," she said pointing to each of them. "Keep him from doing stupid shit."

"Yes Addy," Yosaku and Johnny said before walking over to Zoro who started doing sit ups. Usopp started yelling at him though that did not stop him in the slightest.

Addy rubbed her forehead and took a swig from her flask. These people were going to end her. She imagined what she was going to say to Luffy. 'Sorry Captain, I couldn't stop Nami because I was too busy murdering the others.'

"Oi," she yelled at them and they all stopped whatever they were doing, which looked like the start of a fist fight if the way Zoro was standing was any indication. "You two," she handed the map to Yosaku and Johnny, "figure out a way to beat Nami there or at least find a way to speed us up. Usopp I want you to figure out our food situation, it's been awhile since we last ate."

"Right Addy," Usopp said dashing back down below deck. Yosaku and Johnny sat down and pondered over the map.

Addy turned back towards Zoro. "I did not forget about you," she said pointing a finger at his chest. "If I see you doing anything that can be remotely called physical activity I will tie you to the mast so quickly it will make your head spin."

Zoro grumbled but sat down and stared at her glaring. Now that everyone was settled Addy went back to focus on steering. She walked to the back of the ship where the rudder was, blocking her view of everyone else. The rest either stayed at the back of the ship or went down below decks. Changing their course to match Merry's she sighed and leaned back.

Fishmen huh, she thought. Nami what have you gotten yourself into? Better yet why didn't you tell us? She took a gulp from her flask noticing it was almost empty. Great, another problem she had to deal with.

She placed her head on her knees, feeling overwhelmed. Not for the first time she wished for her captain. He always seemed to know what the right thing to do was.

"Addy," Yosaku asked looking at her worried.

She lifted her head up and spoke, "Yeah?"

"You doing okay?"

"I have been better," she said.

"Well Usopp said to give you this." Addy only just noticed that he was holding a plate and a bottle of what looked like rum.

"Praise him." She took the bottle from his hand and uncorked it downing some of the sweet liquid. She grabbed the plate and saw that it contained three fish. They smelled like absolute heaven. Addy basically inhaled them before remembering she had to breath.

"Right, thank you," she said to Yosaku who sat down next to her. "How are you feeling… with the scurvy and everything?"

"Much better. I feel like myself again." They lapsed into silence again. The only sounds were of them eating. Honestly Addy had no idea how she felt about Johnny and Yosaku. They were idiots sure but that sort of lovable idiot. After all they did take care of Merry while Addy was on, Baratie… with the exception of being thrown off by Nami but what can you do.

"Hey," she asked him. "What's the name of your ship?"

"Ah this little thing? Why we call her Mango."

"Mango?"

"It's a good name don't you think?"

Addy all the sudden felt really bad for the ship. Seriously, Mango? "You don't mind if I talk to it do you?"

"Sure, though I don't see why you would want to. It's not like the ship can talk back."

Addy rolled her eyes but what could she do. After Yosaku excused himself, she tuned herself into the ship. It was a lot harder than with Merry but nothing that she couldn't handle.

"Hello, Mango?" she said.

" _HI!"_ an overly enthusiastic voice called out to her. " _This is so exciting. I have guests. GUESTS. This is my first time having guests. Can you tell how happy I am because I am SUPER happy. I hope I am doing a great job. Am I doing a great job?"_

"You are doing fine Mango. Though can you do me a favor?"

" _Sure anything. I love doing favors. What kind of favor is it? Is it the fun kind_?"

"Yes it is the fun kind. You see we are playing a game of chase and we're it."

" _OOOOOOO a game. I love games. Yosaku and Johnny play games all the time. Their favorite is one called retreat."_

"Right well, this is a different sort of game. We need to catch a ship ahead of us. So do you think you could if possible speed up some."

" _Absolutely,"_ Addy could feel the ship speed increase by a couple of knots. Not bad for someone so small.

" _Thanks, are we winning? Because I really like it when we win._ "

"Well we will know when we catch up to the other ship."

" _Cool. I like you guys. You are fun. Particularly the Green guy. He keeps doing all these crazy exercises. I didn't even know you do a handstand on one finger."_

"ZORO," Addy yelled loud enough for him to hear her. "I told you not to do anything remotely physical. Do not make me get up."

There was some loud swearing and Zoro walked towards her glaring.

"How could you have possibly known?" he asked her.

"I'm psychic."

" _What really?"_ Mango shouted. _"That is so so so cool. I always wanted to meet a psychic. Can you tell the future? Oooo what is going to happen in the next couple of days or so?"_

"Really?" Zoro asked her.

"No," Addy said.

" _Awwww I really, really, really, wanted me to meet a psychic."_

"Well you can breathe underwater, who knows what else you can do," Zoro said sitting down next to her.

"Will people just drop that? It's not that odd. Our Captain can stretch for Ocean's sake."

Zoro hummed in agreement before leaning back against the railing. He was looking up at the sky watching the clouds. Soon Usopp sat down and joined them followed by Johnny and Yosaku. They were all lying around the deck watching the sky above. Addy felt the light breeze play with her hair. The sun warm against her skin. Perhaps they were approaching a summer island. Those were always her favorite. Summer on a Summer island. Perfect weather. It always warmed the water just right. Not that Addy minded swimming in icy water since the cold did not affect her; it was just so much more pleasant warm.

Her mind wandered back to Luffy. She hoped that he was doing alright. Knowing him however he probably found a way to burn Baratie down. Don Krieg should not be too much trouble. What worried her more however was Nami. Her love of treasure was well known but to go after a Fishmen? With her skills? It wouldn't be much of a fight. Addy had encountered a few Fishmen, heck she had been to Fishman Island and every time she got into a fight with one it has always been tough, even with her advantage over humans. They are not unbeatable, after all she had been in some tougher fights with humans, but that did not mean it was easy. For Luffy, Zoro and perhaps Sanji they should not be much a problem. But Nami and Usopp? That was another question entirely. And Zoro was injured. If he got in a fight… well nothing good would happen.

The other problem is that the Fishmen might recognize her. If they did that would be really, really bad. Ocean knows what they would do with her. Even the best of Fishmen, like King Neptune and his men tend to treat her people problematically. Not that it was usually a problem, most of her kind could handle it. But for her it was particularly dangerous.

"Oi Addy," Zoro said. "You seem to be spacing out."

"I'm sorry what?" she said.

"I said we figured out a faster way to Conomi Islands," Usopp said.

"Good, show me."

Johnny passed her the map and she looked over it. He scooted beside her and pointed. "You see here. It's hard to tell but I think that is a current. If we take that we can make a straight shot to Conomi Islands however it is more difficult to travel. The way we are going right now, it's a more roundabout route but it's safer."

"This is the first time I think I have ever heard you recommend the more difficult route," Addy said. "Not that it is all that difficult. I could sail us through this in my sleep."

"If it's that simple why hasn't Nami taken it then?" Zoro asked her.

"I said I could sail us through. Nami is an absolutely brilliant navigator but when it comes to piloting a ship that is a different set of skills. She probably knows about it but wouldn't want to risk it, particularly since she is the only one on Merry. However this does raise another question. She knows these seas better than all of us combined and I wouldn't be surprised if she knew that we were going to take this route only for her to take another altogether."

"So your saying that it would be better if we actually continued to follow her despite it being slower, rather than risk trying to cut her off," Usopp said.

"If we start to really fall behind than we can take the route. But as of right now we are actually gaining on…."

" _ADDYY,"_ Mango yelled. " _ADDY, ADDY, ADDY…"_

"Yes," Addy said.

" _We are approaching a ship. Does that mean we won?"_

"What!?" Addy shot up and looked up over the railing. Cursing that they did not set up a look up she looked out over the ocean. Everyone jumped up with her.

Addy shoulders drooped when she saw it wasn't the Merry. It was an average fishing boat. One that looked like it could use some repairs but still an average fishing boat.

"Does something about that boat seem odd to you," Usopp asked. He was holding up a pair of binoculars.

"Why do you ask?" Addy said.

"I am getting a weird vibe from it."

"Usopp right," Zoro said. "Something is really off about that ship."

"Well that just means we have to sail around it as quick as we can," Usopp said. "No use in delaying, we have to catch up to Nami after all."

"Hand me the binoculars," Addy said.

Usopp reluctantly handed them to her and she looked through them. Now that she was paying attention there was something off about the ship. It reeked of death. As she scanned over the ship she saw what was wrong. Her eyes went wide and her body started shaking.

"Ocean blast it. I hate humans. Why in the world? Useless useless Marines," she said before letting off a long string of curses.

"Addy who are they?" Zoro asked her sliding his hand to his sword.

"Poachers."


	26. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 9

_Author's Note:_

 _Ah this chapter. This chapter was fun. It is based on episode 27 in that the events are occurring at the the same time. So while Luffy is having fun with Don Krieg, Addy and co have to deal with... Well read and find out._

 _As always please review. I will comment on your review at the end of the fic and try to answer any questions I can without giving away spoilers. Also a warning for animal abuse._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Poachers?" Zoro asked.

"Poachers," Addy spat. "Those no good, dirty, rotten, dishonorable, useless, cowardly sacks of shit."

"You really don't like poachers do you?" Johnny asked.

"Who in their right mind would? They are not even worthy of breathing the same air as us." Addy huffed still trembling in anger. "Those people are basically monsters or close enough to it."

"It seems like you have a lot of people you hate," Usopp said.

Addy looked at him surprised. "Not really. I only dislike poachers, people who overfish, Marines, nobles, and anyone who denies someone freedom. Oh and anyone even remotely connected to the World Government at all. That list isn't all that long."

"Forget I said anything."

"Anyway, we should be careful about approaching them. We currently have the element of surprise. It would be a shame to waste it."

"Wait what, we are going to attack them?"

"No don't be silly." Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku sighed. "I will attack them while the rest of you stay on the ship to prevent Zoro from interfering. I will also ask that you provide cover fire if it looks like I need it."

"ARE YOU NUTS?" Yosaku, Johnny and Usopp yelled at her.

"They do have a point Addy," Zoro said. "We do have other priorities."

"Like what?"

"Nami for instance. We have to stop her. Captain's orders remember."

"This will not cause that much of a delay and if Nami really has betrayed us than I will take care of it myself. If she is in trouble than it's her own stupid fault. She is not completely helpless, she can handle herself. Besides you should look at what is happening in front of you."

She shoved the binoculars into Zoro's hands and pointed towards the ship. He held them up and saw what she was pointing at. It was a panda shark being dragged through the water in a net struggling to break free. He was straining against the net but it was becoming clear that it was growing weaker. There were numerous other dead sharks littering the deck, all cut up. It looked like the crew were sorting through the various body parts.

"Do you know what they are going to do to that panda shark," she asked. All four of them shook their heads. "They are going to drag that shark on the deck and watch as it slowly suffocates. Most likely cutting it apart while it is still alive. Its body parts will then later be sold to nobles so that they can feel rich, even though the various crap made from shark and other sea creatures have no actual affect. They will then use the body parts left over to attract more sharks." Addy was breathing heavily. "There is absolutely no honor in their hunt. No connection between predator and prey. The poor creature is killed for no reason whatsoever except to feed someone else's greed. So yes I am at least going to fight them and not stand here to watch the atrocity happen before my very eyes."

"Addy," Zoro said. "I know this is important to you but we need to find the Merry. Nami as well."

Addy laughed. "What are you going to do? Stop me? I am faster than you even on your best day. Try and I will be in the sea so fast you won't even have time to blink."

She stared at Zoro, her ocean green eyes staring into his emerald ones. Neither of them were blinking as the ship rocked with the waves. Everyone was silent, even Mango which Addy considered a miracle.

Finally Zoro sighed in defeat while shaking his head. He looked at her with a mixture of frustration and fondness. "Fine, we will stop the poachers."

"Thank you," Addy said embracing him in a hug. She felt him stiffen under her touch so Addy quickly let him go. His face had turned an interesting shade of red. Close to that of a tomato. "I can't tell you how much this means to me."

"It's no trouble," he mumbled.

"Well you got him whipped," Usopp said. She smacked him on the shoulder. "But anyway I am afraid I have can't-go-on-evil-poachers-boat-disease." Usopp legs were shaking. Addy was surprised he wasn't vibrating Mango.

"Don't worry you won't have too. If everything goes well you won't have to take a step on that ship," Addy said. Usopp sighed in relief.

"Hold on," Zoro said placing his hand on his remaining sword. "If you think that I am letting you go alone…"

"If you think I am letting you come with me in your condition than Mihawk must have injured you more than I thought," Addy said. "If it makes you feel better I will take Johnny with me."

"What? Why me?" he asked.

"Yeah, if Johnny goes, than I go with him," Yosaku said. "We are partners."

Addy shrugged. "Alright if you insist." She turned to look at Zoro. "You okay with this?"

"Do I have a choice," he grumbled not looking particularly happy. He crossed his arms and looked perturbed.

"Not really," Addy said.

"So what's your plan," Usopp asked her.

"Well I originally was just going to swim over and jump on but with those two," she pointed to Johnny and Yosaku. "I might have to come up with something else."

"I think I may have an idea."

…

"Are you sure this is going to work?" Addy asked Usopp.

"Positive, they won't know what hit them,"Usopp replied.

Addy still was a bit unsure. The plan was slightly insane to say the least. It was from Usopp though so what could she expect. She downed a shot from her refilled flask and took a deep breath. Yosaku and Johnny were looking anxious but determined. Addy hoped they were as capable fighters as they said they were. Otherwise the fight might actually be difficult.

"Hey," Zoro said.

"Yes?" she asked him.

"I just…" he looked nervous and anxious. His hand dancing on the handle of his remaining blade. Addy could tell that he was uneasy, though if it was her going off to attack the poachers, or disobeying Luffy's orders Addy was unsure. Most likely it was a mixture of both.

"You know that if you did say no I would have listened," she said. He was Luffy's first mate after all. Especially after what happened today. He may just not realize it yet. "I would not have been happy about it and would have several choice words for you. But I would have listened." Funny enough Addy was actually being truthful. Anyone else and she would have already swam to the ship by now, consequences be dammed. But for some reason she felt like she needed his approval.

"I know." He removed his hand from his blade and placed it on her shoulder. "Make them bleed. I would hate to explain to Luffy why you have gone missing."

Addy gave him a bright smile. "Will do so." For the second time today the stood together. Addy could get used to the feeling. As Zoro pulled away she took a step back. It was time to enact the plan.

"Usopp you ready?"

"Of course. For I am the Great Captain Usopp. My plans never fail."

"Mango?" Addy asked.

" _THIS IS THE BEST DAY OF MY LIFE_ ," Mango yelled. " _I love you guys_."

"Alright then let's do this."

Mango started speeding up dramatically, Wind was in there favor. As Mango got closer to the stern of the other ship Addy could make two guys keeping a lookout. They were going to have to do this quickly to avoid alarming them. Looking at the makeshift trampoline that Usopp made out of the various junk below decked, Addy prayed that it would not fall apart immediately.

"Okay Addy make the jump now," Usopp called out.

She took a running leap sending her several feet in the air. The guards who had finally noticed them could only stand there shocked, mouths hanging wide open. Uncoiling her whip in midair she landed with perfect grace in-between the two men. Before they could even react Addy smashed one in the head with the handle of her whip sending him over the edge into the sea. Turning towards the other guy she wrapped her whip around his neck and tightened. Before he could get on his knees she unfurled the whip rapidly, sending him to join his companion.

Ocean swallowed them whole without a thought. They would not be coming back up. Addy turned back towards Mango which was now much closer. It was time for Johnny and Yosaku to make the jump. As they were making the leap simultaneously Addy was afraid that the trampoline would break from under them. She didn't want to fish them out of the sea. Instead something else happened.

The two of them went flying straight over Addy and into the front of the ship. There was a loud crash and Addy could hear someone screaming what the hell?

'Well there goes the element of surprise,' she thought charging towards the front of the ship. A couple of burly dudes tried getting in her way but she knocked them over like flies. The loud splash indicated their fate.

As she made her way to the front she could feel the waves of death coming off the ship. Death and anger. Overtime a ship becomes like its crew. It was too late for this one. Once she got to the front she had to stop to take it all in.

Johnny and Yosaku were sword fighting several poachers. At some point Yosaku had managed to light his sword on fire. Addy had to admit they were decent swordsmen. Their teamwork was excellent despite where they were fighting.

Blood covered the deck, so much so that the wooden boards had turned red. The smell of dead fish was nauseating, even for her. Dead shark parts were scattered around though Addy could also see some dolphins and what looked like a baby whale. It made her sick and she could feel bile rising in her throat.

After taking a swig she approached a guy from behind and slammed her elbow into the back of his neck. Yes it was dishonorable and no she did not care. These monsters did not deserve the privilege of having a fair fight. He went down like a sack of potatoes. The loud thunk that he made as he hit the deck attracted the attention of others. At least three big burly dudes turned to face her. She gave them a mischievous smile.

"Well boys I guess it's time to play," she said. Addy snapped her whip in the air causing them to take a step back. Yep this was going to be fun.

She was untouchable, like trying to catch water with bare hands. Her whip slashing through flesh and clothing like it was butter. It did not take long before they were all on the ground moaning in pain.

Suddenly Addy heard a click sound coming from behind her. She ducked and spun facing where the noise came from. A bullet flew right where her head was a second ago.

"Good aim," she said to the guy holding the gun. He was now aiming the weapon down towards her. Hand on the trigger. Quickly she flicked her whip so that it wrapped itself around his ankle. "Not fast enough though." With a yank she pulled her whip, essentially pulling the guys legs from under him. There was a sickening crunch as he landed, his head smashing into the deck. Addy unfurled her whip and stood up. If the guy was still alive he would never walk again.

Turning back around she saw guys on the ground by Yosaku and Johnny. Not bad. Though they were still surrounded. How many crew members were there?

Running towards the group she snapped her whip in the air drawing attention to herself. A couple of heads turned towards her. This gave Yosaku and Johnny the advantage they needed to turn the battle back in their favor. Pretty soon all the men were on the ground in various states of consciousness.

"Well looks like our work here is done," Johnny said wiping sweat off his forehead.

"Not quite," Addy said kneeling down over a guy who was barely conscious.

"What?" Yosaku asked. "What more do we need to do? We took care of everyone."

"No we haven't," she said. She grabbed the shirt of the guy laying on the floor, lifting him off which wasn't the easiest thing to do. She then started shaking him roughly. He emitted a loud groan. His eyes blinked a couple of times adjusting before going wide at the sight of her.

"Good your awake. Now where is your Captain?"

"Like I ever tell you bitch," he said spitting at her.

Addy wiped it off with her sleeve, "Look there are one of two ways this is going to go down and in both you're going to tell me where your Captain is."

"What are you going to do to me huh? Tiny thing like you. Why don't you get on your back and show your use."

"Actually you know what never mind. I am going to destroy you even if you tell me where your Captain is. Where shall we start? How about removing your fingers?"

"WHAT?" Johnny yelled at her. Yosaku looked as white as a sheet. "Are you crazy?"

"Your right," Addy said. "We should start with the fingernails, and then move on to the fingers."

"You wouldn't dare," the man growled.

She stared at him, eyes burning with anger. "I have done a lot more for far less than the atrocities you have committed," she hissed. "Do not underestimate what I am about to do to you."

The man shut up and just started gapping at her finally realizing the seriousness of his situation.

"Wait hold on a second…" he said trembling.

"Too late, one of you hand me your sword," she told Johnny and Yosaku.

Both of them stood flabbergasted. Useless, completely useless. Addy sighed. "Today please, before you all die of old age."

"That won't be necessary," a gruff voice spoke. Addy lifted her head a saw a man come up from below deck. He was very tall, muscular with dark black hair. The only thing he was wearing were torn pants and a pair of dangling gold earrings. His hands and arms were covered in blood and it was splatted all across his chest though she could make out the scars lining the body. She could make out what looked like a shark bite on his shoulder. The stench of sweat and blood mixed together assaulting her noise. She could almost taste it on her tongue.

"Captain," the man Addy was holding sputtered. Addy growled and stood up dropping the guy on the floor. She walked towards him and jammed the handle of her whip under his chin.

"You are dead," she growled. Addy was trembling with rage.

"Let's see you try."

* * *

blackcat711- Accurate characters are what I strive for. Addy and her mom have a complicated relationship. There entire family is somewhat of a mess as you will find out. They almost make the Monkey family look somewhat sane. As for what Addy is... that's still going to be a mystery for awhile at least while we are still in East Blue. The answer will come before they reach Alabasta.

SupremeGeneralJoker- You actually have no idea how right you are. Addy and Percy do have some distinct similarities as well as some differences. Some of the relations between characters can be tricky but I am having fun sorting them out. I am not sure Addy knows what pain killer she gave Zoro only that it worked for a limited time. Though that could just be Zoro.

hellspam- Okay I will give this away. Addy is not a fishman in the slightest. You will get more hints come the next arc but the answer won't be directly stated for a long time. By a long time I mean it is going to happen before the crew gets to Alabasta which from here seems like forever. The reveal is all planned out.

Sakura Hatsu- That is not a bad idea but I am not sure how it would exactly work with the plot as it currently is. Merry is very dear to me so she will get her music, I am just not sure it will be from Brook and the Rumba pirates.


	27. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 10

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter is based on episode 28 in that the events take place at the same time. This was another enjoyable chapter. Along with the review responses at the end of the chapter I am also going to be putting in translations of what Addy's moves are. They are from Google translate so if anyone can speak Bahasa Indonesia please correct me if they are wrong which I strongly suspect they are. Though this is also One Piece and I am pretty sure they don't use correct grammar but whatever..._

 _Also please continue to review and ask me questions about anything. I will answer them to the best of my ability._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

She stood before him, her grip firm on her whip. He might have been taller than she was but she had an advantage. As he swung a fist towards her she ducked slamming the handle of her whip into his knee. There was a sick crunch and a howl of pain. Addy back flipped in order to gain some distance, surveying the damage.

He was kneeling on the ground clutching his knee. Pain hissed through his teeth and he was staring at her with murder in his eyes.

"You are dead bitch," he spat.

"Original, I don't think I have ever heard that one before," she said.

He growled and lunged towards her. A quick flick of her whip and a large gash on his cheek was enough to keep him at bay. Even more blood now joined the deck.

The man did not bother to wipe the blood away, letting it fall to the ground. He was giving her the evil eye.

"You know what, I was going to kill you at first but now I think that I am going to keep you alive. My men and I haven't had fun in some time," the guy leered at her. Instinctively Addy took a step back and gripped her whip tighter.

"Oi don't speak about Addy like that," Yosaku shouted raising his sword. "Or you're going to have to answer to us."

"What? There are more of you? What the hell has my crew been doing?" the captain stated. "Who are you people anyway?"

"Those two are bounty hunters, me I'm a pirate," Addy said starting to twirl her whip in her hand.

"Pirate huh," he clicked his tongue. "You're even in bigger trouble than you realize. I have a permit from the World Government to hunt in these waters. Since I am feeling nice, I might go easy on you as long as you get on your knees and…"

"To hell with your World Government permit!" Addy shouted. "I am going to destroy this ship until nothing is left." Her whip was spinning even faster and soon it was just a giant blur. "Lautan Pakem!" She lashed the whip towards him and wrapped it around his body as tightly as she could cutting into the skin. "Kembali!" Addy pulled back the whip unfurling it quickly from his body.

He was covered in numerous gashes and looked worse for the wear but still standing. His breath was a little harsh and his body was trembling.

"That was it?" he gasped. "Girly I deal with whips that cut to the bone. That was nothing." Grabbing a harpoon that was rolling around the deck and attempted to jab Addy. Addy quickly side stepped out of the way. It missed her by a mile.

"Are you compensating for something?" she asked him. "Because if you are than I would recommend actually hitting your opponent."

Snarling he attempted to jab at her again but she swiftly moved out of the way of his attacks. The speed of his attacks increased forcing Addy to move back a couple of steps.

"Stand still bitch," he cried out attempting to strike her.

"Does that ever work," she replied side stepping to the left. "Why do people say that? It's not like anyone is going to…."

Addy let out a horrible screech and dropped to one knee. Pain raced up from her left ankle and she could feel blood dripping down.

"Got you," she heard someone groan. Addy looked down and saw a dagger sticking directly into her ankle. The man she was beating information out of was holding onto the hilt. "Now Captain!"

Looking quickly up she could see the captain coming towards her, aiming the harpoon at her chest. Using what movement she could manage she ducked, trying to avoid a fatal blow. Pain suddenly emanated from her shoulder and she couldn't help but let out a scream. The harpoon went directly through her right shoulder, her dominate side. There was an awful sucking sound as the harpoon was pulled out of her.

Blood splattered all over her and Addy could feel herself getting woozy. She had to end this before she lost too much blood. She could see the captain coming in for another strike. Using what time and strength she had she ripped her ankle of the dagger, switched her whip to her other hand and rolled away from both men.

Her ankle and shoulder were on fire. The pain was almost overwhelming. Sitting on the deck she was clutching her shoulder trying to stop the blood flow though it was fruitless. Addy tried getting up but her ankle collapsed on her sending her sprawling on the deck. She could hear the captain laughing and his footsteps as he approached her.

"Now this is the position you should be in. On your back like a good girl."

"Hey, don't forget about us," Johnny called out. He and Yosaku charged at him swords raised. Addy watched in what seemed like slow motion as the captain used his harpoon to block the sword strikes and swinging it sending them both crashing into the railing of the deck. It was a miracle they did not go overboard.

"What a useless attack," the captain said.

"No," Addy stated. "It was exactly what I needed." She yanked her whip which she curled around his ankles while he was distracted by Yosaku and Johnny, pulling his feet literally out from under him. As if on instinct he dropped his harpoon. Using what strength she had Addy lunged upwards grabbing it out of the air. Twirling it once she jabbed it with as much force as she could muster straight through her opponent's heart.

"Poetic to be killed by the weapon that you used to slay so many," she said. Pulling the harpoon out she knew that she would not get a response. He was dead as soon as the tip pieced the organ. "Now justice has been done." Addy sat up catching her breath. Her clothes were soaked with blood. The pain had turned into a dull throb. She would not be able to do any major fighting for a while and certainly not against strong fishmen.

"You bitch," she heard the man with the dagger call out. "I am going to torture you until you beg for death and then throw your body to the sharks."

Despite her body trembling and every muscle protesting she forced herself to stand up. Still gripping the spear she held it up over her good shoulder and threw. Despite not having Usopp's aim and with divine intervention it landed on its target. Ocean must have been on her side for that to occur. There was a whistle as it flew through the air, and one last groan. The head of the harpoon buried itself in the man. He would not be getting up again.

She kneeled down to get her whip and almost collapsed from the strain. "Addy," Yosaku cried out. "You killed them." Each of them took a side to support her. They were basically holding her up.

"What did you expect me to do? Have a tea party and discuss how wonderful the world is?"

"You alright?" Johnny asked her.

"Hell no, I feel like I have been skewered," she replied rolling her eyes. "Zoro is going to kill me if the blood loss doesn't do me in first."

"It is pretty bad," Yosaku said. He pulled his hand away from her shoulder. It was covered in blood.

"Alright put me down against the railing," she commanded. They gently put her down though even those movements made her body want to give up. "Proceed with the plan. Gather up every single flammable thing on this rig and place where they store the oil. We are going to turn this place into a bonfire."

"But your injuries," Johnny said.

"Are something I can deal with, you and Yosaku go find stuff. Unless that is too difficult for you to manage."

"Nothing is too difficult for us," Yosaku pronounced. The two of them dashed off. Hopefully they would be able to manage anyone else who might be left.

Unclipping her pack from her belt she rummaged around for bandages and the tube of cream reminding herself to restock the next chance she got. Getting her shirt off was the hard part. After struggling for several minutes she managed to get it off. There was no way she was going to get it back on without help however. Rolling down her stockings was an easier prospect and she didn't bring shoes so that was another thing she did not have to deal with thankfully.

Slathering her hands with cream she pressed it against her shoulder. It felt cool against her skin though soon the sting set in. Addy grit her teeth. In this case pain was good. While that was working she also applied some to her ankle. Hopefully nothing was broken but Addy could not be sure without a doctor. After the stinging feeling faded she wrapped herself up in bandages making sure that they were tight.

Sighing and with a lot of effort she rolled her stockings back on. Her shirt would have to wait. Hopefully Yosaku and Johnny would not freak out too badly. Turning herself she looked out over Ocean. The waves were calm and happy as if they were celebrating the defeat of the poachers. Hell Addy knew they were.

She hoped Zoro and Usopp managed to keep up with the larger ship. She briefly wondered if they managed to catch any of the battle. Addy hoped not. Zoro was already going to have a field day, not to mention Luffy when he finally caught up.

Addy continued staring at the sea while Yosaku and Johnny continued to gather every flammable item possible and stick it in the back of the ship. Shouldn't be much longer now.

"Addy were finished," Yosaku said coming up towards her. He stopped dead in his tracks his face blushing madly. "Your shirt…."

"Yeah and…?" She replied rolling her eyes at him.

"You don't have it on."

"Well it would have been kinda hard to bandage myself with it on. Now grow up and help me get this back on."

Still blushing he helped her slide it over her and get her shoulder through the strap without injuring it further. The dull ache had turned into a throb. At this point Addy felt like she would be in less pain if she just removed her arm.

"Alright now that is over and done with we should get back to the others," Addy said.

"Right," Yosaku replied.

The two of them stared at each other unblinking.

"You do realize you have to carry me right?" Addy asked. "I can't even hobble with my busted ankle at the moment."

"Right of course," he replied.

Even though he gently picked her up she still felt like she was being jostled. He was carrying her bridal style, not too differently from how Zoro was carrying her not that long ago. It must have been what a few weeks ago? If even that.

"If you drop me I am going to kill you." She heard him gulp and he suddenly started walking steadier albeit much slower.

They eventually made it to the other side of the ship. Addy could make out Usopp waving from the Mango. Zoro was standing there with his arms crossed not looking to happy. She was close enough that Addy could have jumped from this ship to her. However what caught her attention was the massive pile of junk that Yosaku and Johnny collected. It was several feet high. Wooden and gunpowder and what smelled like oil all piled on top of each other.

"Impressive," Addy said.

"Why thank you," Johnny said giving a mock bow.

"Alright now let's join the others and watch Usopp lite this up."

As the three of them prepared to make the jump Addy caught something out of the corner of her eye.

"Wait a second," she said.

"What now?" Yosaku asked.

"The panda shark. We can't leave it. It's going to die."

"I will go rescue it then," Johnny said preparing to leap into the water.

"No, it is most likely going to try and eat you. Let me do it."

"Addy you're injured," Yosaku chimed in.

"And I can still swim better than you even with my legs were chopped off. Now give me your sword and toss me into Ocean. I will be fine."

The two of them exchanged a glance and a nod. Johnny unsheathed his sword and handed it to her. Yosaku gently tipped her into Ocean and she landed without a splash.

As soon as she hit the water the pain fled from her limbs. She was still injured, Ocean could not heal her of that but it could make the pain cease. Here she could move as freely as she wished, the water supporting her.

Making her way to the net she could see the panda shark struggling. She whistled, which underwater sounded eerie, like some sort of whale song. It caught the shark attention and it stared at her, eyes wide with both curiosity and fear. They kept up eye contact as they swam, not breaking it for a moment. After several moments the shark relaxed and moved as far away as it could from Addy. Gripping Johnny's sword she slowly started cutting through the net hoping to make a hole big enough for the shark to swim through. It was thick and durable and was taking way more time than Addy wanted. Eventually the rope came apart and the shark swam off. Waving its tail in thanks it swam off to a deeper part of Ocean.

Fighting against the current Addy made her way back to Mango. Addy was easily able to keep up with the ship the only question was how to get on. Well Addy knew how she was going to get on she just really, really, really, really didn't want to do it.

Sighing Addy prepared herself. This was going to hurt. Swimming back a little from the ship, she launched herself upwards. Breaching the surface with grace she could feel the pain returning to her limbs. She was several feet in the air and as she looked down she could see Usopp, Johnny and Yosaku staring up at her, jaws dropped. Twisting herself in the air she managed to land perfectly on the ship.

Or at least she would have landed perfectly if it wasn't for her ankle and shoulder. Instead she crashed into the deck and felt everything split. The pain intensified and Addy was sure dying would be less painful.

"ADDY," she heard someone call out. She was pretty sure it was Zoro since he is the only one who could sound absolutely worried and angry at the same time, well besides Nami but she wasn't here.

"I'm alive," she groaned out trying to sit herself up but failing to do so. "At least I think I am. I would hope death would not be this painful." She felt strong arms pull her up and found herself pressed against something hard and warm. Definitely Zoro then.

Pulling away slightly she looked up to see his worried face.

"Relax I will be fine," she said. "A couple of hours in water will help."

"We have a bath, would that help?" Johnny asked.

"As long as it is not a complete disaster like the rest of the ship is it should be fine. But first off, Usopp."

"Yes?" he asked her.

"Light it up."

As Usopp sent a gunpowder star over to the ship it lite up in flames. In moments the fire consumed the entire ship and Addy could feel the heat even from here. Justice, true justice, had be served.

* * *

Lautan Pakem- Ocean's Grip. This is probably her most basic move so suspect to see it a lot.

Kembali- Return. Usually accompanies most of her moves. It will also be seen a lot.

hellspam- I have already planned some of the reactions the fishmen are going to have. It will certainly be a surprise for them.

Sakura Hatsu- I hope his death was satisfying enough. Zoro is adorable and will continue to be so.

Sira- I have only saw this recently as well. It is so fun. During the wait period she would be sitting in between Robin and Nami and when the dance part started up she would be waving her whip in the air if she was going to ensnare something while shaking her hips. Continue asking questions.


	28. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 11

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter is based on episode 29 in that the events take place at the same time. We are almost done with this arc and then we will move directly to Arlong Park. Please continue to review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Well," Addy said. "That was fun." The ship had burned down to nothing but cinders, Ocean claiming what was left.

"You call that fun?" Usopp yelled. "Look at you. You looked like you have been through a war zone."

"It's nothing. I got careless."

"Your shoulder was impaled by a harpoon," Johnny said. "I think that was a little bit more than careless."

"Not to mention the dagger that went through your ankle," Yosaku chimed in.

"Anyway," Addy said interrupting the two. "We should get back on track. We lost a lot of time on this detour.

"How far away do you think the Merry is?" Usopp asked.

Addy closed her eyes and listened. She could hear Merry's voice louder than before. Apparently they had not lost as much time as she thought.

"We are actually not that far away," she said. "Perhaps Nami ran into trouble as well. If we stay on the course we are on now we should reach her or at least her destination soon. I trust you guys and Mango to figure it out."

" _Count on me Addy,_ " Mango shouted. " _I will get use there before you know it. I still have a race to win. I wonder what the prize is."_

"In the meantime," Addy said. "You said something about a bath?"

"I know where it is." Zoro said.

"You do?" Usopp asked clearly skeptical.

Zoro rolled his eyes and gathered Addy up in his arms. Muttering something about not being useless and moving bathrooms he set off. In the completely wrong direction from where Addy suspected the bathroom would be.

Twenty minutes later and he was still hopelessly lost. Addy wasn't sure how this was possible considering that Mango was only slight larger than what Addy would call a boat. After bumbling around for a while they found it.

Addy was pleasantly surprised. Unlike the rest of Mango this room wasn't a complete disaster. Well at least compared to everything else. Bathroom supplies were stuck in random places. Empty rolls of toilet paper all over as well as stacks of full ones. The shower also looked like it was converted into a storage closest. Towels were piled up in the corner but at least the actual bath was clean which Addy considered a miracle since two guys lived on the ship.

"Place me in," she told Zoro. He carefully placed her into the empty tub. It was actually rather deep and wide enough so Addy could fully stretch out.

"Don't you need to um…" he looked down and shuffled his feet. Addy could see a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Clothes are water proof. Thought you would have figured that out by now."

"Right yeah… anyway I will leave you too…"

"Oh no you don't." Addy turned the knob maxing out the hot water. "You are going to stay right there where I can see you. That way I can make sure that you don't do anything stupid like 500 jumping jacks or sit ups or something."

"Then what do you want me to do?"

"I don't particularly care as long as you don't do anything physical. We cannot afford any more injuries." She felt her shoulder twinge and sunk even deeper in the water. The hot water seeped into her skin and she could feel her muscles slowly start to relax. Her whole body was submerged up to her neck. Zoro having nothing to retort that sat down leaning against the tub.

"You took care of them?" Zoro asked.

"Killed the captain and the first mate with my own hands," Addy said. "The fire probably took care of the rest."

Zoro hummed in response most likely pondering what Addy said. The two remained in silence for a while enjoying each other company. Soon however she noticed that Zoro's breathing slowed down. Lifting herself out of the tub slightly she saw that he had his eyes closed. He had fallen asleep. With the heat coming from the bath Addy didn't blame him. She was about ready to doze off herself. With everything going on she felt like she could use a vacation, or at least a party. Taking a swig from her flask that Usopp kindly filled up for her Addy felt her nerves calm down and her mind become fuzzy. Glugging it all down she slowly sunk into the water until her head was underneath. Closing her eyes she slowly drifted off to sleep.

…

"Addy….. ADDY?" she heard someone yell. She opened her eyes and saw Usopp looking over her.

"Yeah," she said. When he continued staring blankly at her Addy remember she was still underwater. Surfacing without the rippling water she shook the water out of her hair drying it instantly. Zoro was still fast asleep. Addy wasn't sure anything could wake him. "What's up?"

"We are almost to Conomi islands now though there hasn't been a sign of Nami," Usopp said.

Addy sighed sinking back into the now cool water. How long had she been asleep?

"Couple of hours," Usopp said. "Considering everything we thought you would be out of it for longer."

"Thankfully I wasn't," she said. "I sort of expected not seeing her due to our delay but it doesn't really matter. We know where she is, the only thing will be finding Merry."

"There is one other thing. How are we going to inform Luffy of where we are?"

Addy stared at Usopp for a moment before cursing and getting out of the bath quickly soaking Zoro and startling him awake. Her legs trembled slightly but she was able to stand upright despite the slight slipperiness of the tub. "Shit. I did not think about that."

"Think about what now?" Zoro asked yawning.

"Captain," Addy said. "He has no idea where we are. By the time we go back and get him Nami is likely to be long gone."

Zoro stared at her for a moment before cursing and getting up as well.

"Now what are we going to do?" Usopp asked.

"We don't happen to have a den den mushi do we?" Addy asked. Zoro and Usopp shook their heads. "Well that's another thing that needs to be changed." She pinched the bridge of her nose and made a mental note that the first chance they get would be to make vivre cards for everyone. Not that would be anytime soon considering that you could only get them in the New World. "Okay, we might have to rent a boat once we get to Conomi islands. I was hoping to meet up with Captain sooner, considering that two of us are injured and we are dealing with Fishmen. As long as he didn't completely mess up his fight he should be injury free, which is something we sorely need right now."

"Hey guys," Johnny called from the doorway. "You might want to take a look at what is going on." The four of them headed up, going through the disaster that was the main room. Addy had a limp though at least she could walk which was a major improvement. Her shoulder seemed to crack with every movement. She hoped that there isn't any permanent damage. As for now moving her right arm was going to be a problem, luckily she was ambidextrous. Reaching the deck she saw Yosaku leaning over the edge of Mango staring at something in the ocean.

She walked towards Yosaku and looked down. A smile came to her face as she saw what Yosaku was looking at. The panda shark from before was swimming along with Mango. Addy recognized the scare on his fin.

"Hello friend," she said. "Looks like you decided to follow us huh?"

" _I am going to call him Chocolate,_ " Mango said.

"Chocolate is then, do you like that name?" The Panda Shark gave a little flip.

"Did you really name the shark Chocolate?" Yosaku asked. She gave him a hard stare and he flinched.

"What is it Addy?" Zoro called.

"It's the panda shark I saved."

" _Chocolate."_

"Sorry, I mean Chocolate," she said.

"Wonder if he is lost," Usopp asked standing beside Addy and looked down at the shark.

"I have no idea. Perhaps it wants to repay us."

"Addy it's a shark," Zoro said. "It's not like they have life debts or anything."

"Your actually sort of right about that," she said. Zoro gave a skeptical look. "However, panda sharks are slightly different. It is supposed to be good luck to help a panda shark."

"Why panda sharks?" Usopp asked.

"I have no idea," she stated.

"It is really cute," Yosaku said. Chocolate did several summersaults in the air.

"I think that it likes you," Addy said. A thought dawned on her.

Quickly, Addy leaped over the edge of the railing into Ocean below. She heard some sounds of protest but the feeling of sea water on her skin was worth it. Swimming until she reached the shark, she swam beside him.

"Addy get out of there, it's going to eat you," Usopp shouted though his voice was distorted through the water

"Actually it's more like the other way around," Addy mumbled swimming side by side the shark. If the shark could stare at her wide eyed that is what this one would be doing.

"Relax," she said in her native tongue which sounded like flowing water if it was combined with a flute. "I am not here to eat you. I was wondering if you could do something for me."

Addy couldn't actually talk to fish, only mermaids could do that. Most likely because it is harder to eat things that can talk to you. However, everything that lived in water from the smallest minnow to the largest Sea King could understand her language. Well it was more like her particular accent in the language but that was details.

"You see my friends and I are in a bit of a bind."

"Addy are you drowning?" Usopp asked. "Because you are making some really strange noises."

Surfacing she turned towards the Mango. "I'm fine," she called up before diving back down and turning her attention back to Chocolate. "As I was saying, one of us needs to get back to Baratie. You know where that this? It's a ship that looks like a fish. You probably have tried to eat it at some point."

The shark did what looked halfway between a nod and a shrug, if sharks could shrug. Addy hoped that meant yes.

"Great, well would it be possible for you to carry one of us there. I know it's a lot to ask but we did save your life and I am resisting the temptation to eat you." The shark shuddered and Addy knew that she had him. "I am glad we could come to an understanding."

Diving down beneath the water several feet, she launched herself into the air landing safely back on the Mango. She felt the impact jar her ankle and shoulder which stunned her slightly, hopefully not causing any more damage.

"I think I solved her problem of talking to Captain," she said, shaking the water out of her hair. "The shark is willing to take one of us back to Baratie."

"The shark?" Usopp asked skeptically. "Are your sure that your injuries didn't damage your brain?"

"Pretty sure," Addy replied. "I know it sounds insane."

"Really?" Johnny asked.

Addy rolled her eyes. "But we don't have much of a choice. It is either trust the shark or sail back to Luffy and potentially lose Nami."

"Shark it is then," Zoro grunted. "So who should…."

"I will," Johnny and Yosaku said simultaneously. They then turned to each other and glared.

"Well this is enjoyable," Addy said. The two of them were fighting over who should go. Right now Yosaku was winning until Johnny brought up the scurvy. Addy left the group and went to the other side of the ship to talk to the only one who could solve this argument.

" _I don't like it when they argue,"_ Mango said. " _It's not fun. I think it's the opposite of fun. What is the opposite of fun?_ "

"Pain," Addy stated saying the first thing that came to her mind. "Well which one of the two do you think should go?"

" _Ride Chocolate? Well Johnny is better with animals, but Yosaku is better at directions. He can always find the person when he plays hide and seek."_

"That's…. interesting."

" _Oh, Johnny is better with dealing with the sails but Yosaku is the one that can cook."_

"I will keep that in mind though I am not sure what that has to do with our current situation."

Addy heard a huge splash and closed her eyes.

" _OOO are they playing a new game? I wonder what the rules are? Ask about the rules."_

She hobbled back towards the others and She saw Zoro and Usopp leaning over the edge looking below.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Zoro pushed the two of them over the edge," Usopp said. Addy could hear that they were still arguing.

"Might as well let the shark decide," Zoro stated. "If it is smart enough to take one of them back to the Baratie than it is smart enough to decide which one to take."

Addy stared. Well that was one way of solving the problem. Hopefully the shark would figure that out and not try to eat them.

"And another thing… WHERE ARE YOU GOING?" Johnny yelled.

"Looks like the shark made its choice," Usopp said. Addy watched as the shark swam away with Yosaku in its mouth. Hopefully he would make it back to Luffy. As long as Yosaku could talk it really didn't matter how many limbs he had.

After dropping a ladder for Johnny to climb back on the ship, Addy went back to piloting the ship. Nami had definitely made it to Conomi islands by now. Even with Merry protesting. She felt her anger rise at the idea of Merry being hurt. Nami better have a damn good excuse, Addy was already planning on giving her an earful.

Keeping an eye out over Ocean to see if she could spot the slightest hint of land. Usopp was already on lookout duty but it was always a good idea to have two pairs of eyes looking. Wherever Nami is they would find her and bring her back kicking and screaming if need be to Luffy. Addy hoped he was alright. Don Krieg did not look like that much of a threat but who knows what tricks he has up his sleeves. If Luffy got injured…. No Addy would not allow herself to think about that possibility. Luffy is fine and soon he will bring their new nakama with him. After all they could really use a cook.

Out across Ocean who knows what was waiting for them. She took ahold of her locket and sent out a silent prayer for protection, for Luffy, Nami, Merry and the three of them as well. Addy could only hope that it will help.

* * *

hellspam- That is a fantastic idea. Look forward to that move in the future. Perhaps I need to watch more anime just to steal moves from people. As for the bounty poster well that is a bit of a spoiler but let's just say that her attack on the poachers is going to come back to bite her.

Sira- I like the thorns idea, I will see if I can work with that. The problem with ice and fire based powers is that they sort of step on the toes of both Brook and Sanji. Addy will develop her own powers later, right now it is more of physical moves I am working on. Haki is basically out for her for reasons that will become apparent later.


	29. Cooks, Kettles and Blood Part 12

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is the last chapter of this arc. Next one is going to be Debts Paid in Full. Expect the first chapter Wednesday. This chapter is based on episode 30 of the anime in the sense that the events occur at the same time. As always please review. I am happy to hear any suggestions or questions you may have._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"I wonder what Luffy is doing now?" Usopp asked sitting down next to her with a plate of fish. The two of them were sitting in the back of the ship by the door that led down below deck. Had that much time already passed? Addy took it gently from his hands. She chewed at it slowly savoring the taste. There was not much else to do anyway.

"Probably stuffing his face," she said after swallowing. "He is on a floating restaurant after all. I hope that he managed to recruit Sanji."

"I know. His food was amazing. To eat like that every day." Usopp was practically salivating at the thought.

"I do miss really good food. No offense."

"None taken. I basically taught myself after my mom died."

"She must be proud of you to be self-sufficient."

"You think so?"

"I really do."

"Well of course she would. For I am the great captain Usopp, doer of great deeds, slayer of horrible monsters…"

"Teller of many tales."

"Awful liar," Zoro said sitting down. Johnny sat down next to him covered in sweat and breathing heavily.

"What is up with you?" Addy asked Johnny. Usopp was raving about something or other to Zoro who was looking bored.

"Training," Johnny said. "Zoro was showing me a few moves."

Well that explained the grunting she was hearing, on top of the sea gulls and the sounds of Ocean. Addy glared at Zoro. But he shrugged it off. She sighed finally giving up. It's not like she could fully control him anyway. All she could do would be there to pick up the pieces if he did something stupid. Same goes for the rest of the crew as well, though out of all of them Nami was the one being stupid right now.

"Indeed," Zoro said. "But whatever the case we need to follow Luffy's orders without any detours." He glanced at Addy and she shrugged. There wasn't anything she could do about it now. Besides it needed to be done. No one else was going to step in.

"You have a strange sense of justice," Usopp said.

Addy scoffed, "Don't insult me. Justice is a meaningless term, malleable like any other. An excuse to do whatever you want. I would prefer to call it sticking to my morals. You can argue that those are screwed up however."

"You're a born and bred pirate," Zoro said. "I would be surprised if you were normal."

"Thanks for that?"

Zoro nodded and Usopp stared at both of them confused before shrugging it off and continuing to eat. Addy took a swig from her flask. At this point Addy thought she had gone through most of the alcohol supplies on Mango. Well her and Zoro considering the bottle he was nursing. Addy briefly wonder if he should be drinking considering his injuries but dropped it considering she was pretty much doing the exact same thing. The two of them were quite the pair.

"Addy?" Usopp asked. "When was the last time you changed your bandages?"

She placed her hand on her shoulder and it came back tinged with blood.

"Crap," she said rooting around her bag. She was running low on the water proof bandages. Addy swore she had plenty but after joining the Straw Hats her supply seemed to have dropped. Luckily she still had some grabbing them out of her bag and holding them in triumph.

Stumbling slightly as she got up she limped her way below deck which was a vast improvement from before. After clearing a space on the floor, which involved kicking over various piles of junk into other piles of junk, she sat back down. Peeling the bandages off she took a look at her injuries. They were red and inflamed but did not look infected. The bleeding had pretty much stopped though there was still some residue.

Carefully wrapping the injuries in fresh bandages she made sure that it was tight. It would restrict her movement but she did not want to risk the bleeding starting back up again. It reminded her to check on Zoro. Knowing him he had probably ripped them all off.

Returning back on deck she saw that the sun has set. It was a cloudless night and the moon was out. Stars will glinting in the sky casting everything in a silvery light. The air was crisp and cool. She closed her eyes listening to the sound of the waves against the ship. Opening her eyes back up she saw that the rest of the crew had fallen asleep on the deck. Addy did not blame them. It had been an immensely long day, with Mihawk, Don Krieg, the poachers. And who knows what tomorrow will bring.

She quietly walked up to Zoro and looked at him. He was deeply asleep, his chest rising and falling beneath the mass of bandages. As much as Addy knew that she should change them, she could not bring herself to wake him up. He looked so peaceful and not in pain.

Walking towards the front of the ship she glanced over the waves wishing she could hear what they were saying. How much knowledge must they possess?

" _Well they are only waves. How much can they tell you?"_ Mango asked.

"Don't be an idiot," Addy said. "You might be small but you are still a ship. You know exactly what Ocean is."

" _I know, but I don't really know, you know?"_

Addy slammed her head into the railing. She really should not have done that.

" _Ouch, that must have hurt._ "

"It did." She lifted her head back up and laid down on the ship looking up at the stars. If she wasn't a helmsman Addy thought she would have liked to be an astronomer. She had her best memories under stars. It was under these very same stars she met Riley and was also bound to her for all of time. The stars reminded her of Riley. They probably always would. Her eyes welled up with tears. The empty space in her soul felt like a vast open chasm.

" _Hey what's wrong?"_

 _"_ It's nothing." Addy grabbed her flask and downed it all, wanting to forget. Needing to forget.

" _Um, I am pretty sure you shouldn't do that. Bad stuff can happen."_

"You don't say." Addy tried getting up a felt immediately dizzy. Her body felt immensely warm, it was rather soothing. Everything was foggy and her mind was in a complete daze.

"Hey…. The stars are out," she said, her speech slurred.

" _Okay I think I know what to do here. I need to make sure that you stay on your back. At least that is what Yosaku does when Johnny gets like this. Oh and you need to drink a ton of water. Johnny forces it down Yosaku even when he protests. There was also something about a bacon sandwiches."_

 _"_ Mango everything is going to be okay, nothing to be worried about." Addy closed her eyes. "It's sleepy time now."

" _Okay I do have a question however_."

"Yes?"

" _Well Johnny and Yosaku always make sure that someone is up? To keep a look out for stuff. Do we not need to do that or…"_

"Wake up Usopp then."

" _Um how_?"

"You'll think of something."

As she started to fall asleep she could feel Mango starting to rock back and forth soothing her. Then she started to rock a little harder. Addy figured it must be due to the waves.

" _USOPP WAKE UP!"_ Mango yelled.

Addy groaned opening her eyes. "You do know that I am the only one who can hear you right?"

" _Really? Well that explains why Yosaku and Johnny never respond when I talk to them. I just thought they couldn't hear right._ "

What has my life come to? Addy thought. I should have just waited on that island. But no, I had to join the hyperactive idiot and his band of misfits.

"Hey were not all misfits," Usopp said.

Addy sat up. Bad idea, the world was spinning around her like she was on a merry go round going 90 miles an hour. Luckily Usopp was there to catch her.

"You thought about cutting back some? You drink it like it is water."

"Thought about it but it is the only thing that stops my murderous rampages," Addy said. The two of them chuckled though Usopp looked slightly alarmed. "What are you doing up?"

"Well you see while I was dozing off keeping one eye open for any potential danger when out of the corner of my eye I spotted a shadow. Quickly getting up I walked towards it, slingshot in hand. As I turned the corner what I saw was the most monstrous thing imaginable. It had three eyes and eight arms and jaws as wide as a row boat."

"Usopp normally I would indulge you but right now my mind is spinning and I feel like I am on fire. I am going to bed. Don't wake me or Zoro up unless the world is ending. And I mean literally ending, not your kind of world ending." Addy promptly collapsed on the deck. She was going to be out for the next several hours or at least that was the hope.

"Night," she heard Usopp say. She might have given a response but it sounded more like a groan.

" _Hey look, he's up. My plan worked. Maybe he did hear me._ "

"Congratulations you win the prize," Addy said.

"Who are you talking too?" Usopp asked.

"Mango."

Usopp gave her a weird look before muttering something about her being more drunk than normal.

" _Hey Usopp, can you hear me?"_ It's going to be a long night.

…

Addy was pretty sure her head was going to explode. Cracking open her eyes everything was bright and she immediately closed them again. After falling asleep after who knows what hour the last thing that Addy wanted to do was get up now. Unfortunately the universe would not be so kind.

"Oi you need to get up," Zoro said.

"Screw you," Addy replied.

She could hear him sigh and grumble something about women being a nightmare. He grabbed her arm and forced her to sit up. Addy tried and failed to bat him away and next thing she knew she had pills forced down her throat along with a glass of water. Spluttering, she gave him a glare.

"Yes I know it's not pleasant but it will help you with the hangover," he stated.

"Just give me several glasses of water and I will be fine," she muttered. The light was still absolutely blinding so she kept her eyes shut. The headache was very slowly starting to fade away from Oh kill me now to intolerable.

"That is why I brought a pitcher." He placed what felt like a glass handle in her hand, cool to the touch. Helping to bring it up to her lips, she tasted the sweet, cooling refreshing water. She downed it in one go.

Zoro looked at her quizzically. "Can you choke on water, like if it goes into your lungs or something?"

"You know, I don't actually know. It has never happened. Which I guess answers the question." She carefully put the pitcher down and tried to force her eyes open.

"Hey, take it easy. You need to be able to sail the ship."

"I could sail Mango if I were blind." She managed to stand up though she immediately felt her knees buckle. Zoro immediately steadied her wrapping and arm around her waist.

"Thanks," she said.

"You should take it easy," he said helping her walk. Addy could make out that they were heading towards the back of Mango, where she assumed everyone else was.

"Usopp told me the same thing."

"You should listen. Don't make me have Luffy talk to you."

Addy hissed. That was pretty much the last thing that she wanted. "You know your no better than I am."

"I can handle it better."

She scoffed though she knew he was speaking the truth. "Whatever. It's not like I want to. It helps me to forget."

"What could have happen that you want to forget so badly?"

"That is not any of your bloody business."

Zoro quieted down and Addy realized that she might have been a little bit harsh. "Look I am sorry. It's not something I want to talk about, particularly when I am hungover. Or ever."

She saw Zoro nod and his grip tighten over her. Relief washed over Addy. He understood which actually made Addy worried about him. What has he been through?

"Oi Addy you feeling better?" Usopp asked.

"Depends entirely on how you define better," she replied.

"Well there is some good news," Johnny said.

"You invented a cure for a hangover?" she asked him.

"Um no…"

"Trust me if they did, than you would not have been the only one who got plastered last night," Zoro said.

"Whatever, what is the news?"

"Look," Usopp asked pointing across the ocean.

Unwrapping herself from Zoro she carefully walked to the railing. Everything was still immensely bright but she could make out more details. Scanning the horizon she looked for what Usopp was pointing at.

When she finally found it she let out a small smile.

"Gotcha," she said. Out there in the distance was an island. Addy could just make it out but she knew that is what they were looking for. There were no other islands in the area for several miles. The Conomi islands. They had finally reached them. Now all they had to do was find Merry, track down Nami and possibly fight off a crew of Fishmen with two of them injured and two more of them who knows where.

"This might be our hardest fight yet," Addy said clutching her shoulder. Zoro let forth a grin and placed his hand on his remaining sword. Addy could feel him trembling with excitement. She would have to make sure that he didn't go overboard and exacerbate his injuries. Usopp let out a squeak and hid himself behind Zoro, trembling for very different reasons. Yosaku and Johnny clutched each other.

" _Aw_ _don't tell me its goodbye,_ " Mango said. She sounded sad and Addy had a feeling that if she could pout that is what she would be doing right now.

"It won't be long until we reach our destination, so yes," Addy said. "It has been an odd journey but I have enjoyed it. However, right now we need to follow Captain's orders."

"Find Nami and make our way to the Grand Line," Zoro said.

"What can possibly go wrong?" Addy asked staring at the island as it got closer. It was nothing they could not handle. They were after all the crew of the future Pirate King. Nami just needed to be reminded of that. If she thinks that she can just leave than she got another thing coming. Nakama is forever and nothing is going to stop them from getting her back.

* * *

PuddyKatz- Mango was really fun to write. I am going to miss her. Zoro and Addy are going to have many misadventures in the future and there are going to be even more feels. Hopefully.

hellspam- It is a balance with Addy. While it sounds like a neat idea one of the strengths of One Piece is the diversity of fighting. I also have to make sure that Addy is weaker than Sanji, Zoro, and Luffy. I think of her as being a sort of on Robin's power level. That being said I can use that idea of the gates for another character that I have in the works.

RedHairedOctavia- Very clever indeed. :)

Sira- Okay you just gave me the perfect weapon for a completely different character in this fic. I will play around with the thorn whip idea but I have a sort of different development for Addy on Skypeia. Let's see how things develop.


	30. Debts Paid in Full Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _So here it is the first chapter and it is actually longer than I suspected it would be. We are into the Arlong arc. This chapter is firmly based on episode 31 of the anime. As always please review and ask questions and I will do my best to answer them._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

It did not take long for them to reach the island, enough for the hangover to go away thankfully. Ocean and Wind were on their side. Scanning the coast Addy tried to see if she could spot Merry.

"W-We're finally here," Johnny said. "Arlong Park." He was cowering behind the railing in the front of the ship as if he was afraid of the island itself. Usopp was doing the exact same thing he was.

"This is it?" Usopp asked. "The base of the merman pirate, Arlong, who survived the Grand Line."

"Merry!" Addy called out. Hoping for an answer.

" _Addy_?" Merry called. " _Thank word you are here. Is everyone alright? I don't know where Nami is? She got off and left._ "

"Where are you?"

" _I don't know. She left me on the shore somewhere. I can see a forest, and a few rock and brick wall and a dock. It looks like there might be a town close by._ "

" _OOOOO it's a game of hide and seek. I like hide and seek,"_ Mango said.

" _Mango is that you?"_

" _Yep. Who else could it be?"_

The two of them launched into a conversation that Addy drowned out. As happy as she was to find out that Merry was safe, sort of, she now had other things to worry about.

At the moment they were sailing towards a yellow tower with the words Arlong Park written in front. The building was protected by a brick wall, though there was an entrance to allow ships to sail through from the ocean.

"Is Nami really there?" Usopp asked.

"I hope so," Addy said. "Otherwise we came all this way for nothing."

"Firstly, if Nami is really here, then we should be able to find the Going Merry," Johnny said. "So should we check if it's really anchored at this island first?"

"Already did so," Addy said. The others looked at her skeptically. She sighed. "Look trust me Merry is here."

" _You know they are more likely to believe you if you tell them that you can actually talk to us_ ," Merry said somewhat exasperated. Addy rolled her eyes.

Zoro tapped his sword against the deck before standing up right next to Addy. He had a determined look in his eyes.

"Prepare to rush in," he stated drawing his sword slightly from the scabbard.

"W-why would we do that?" Usopp and Johnny yelled at him, their eyes basically popping out of their heads.

"Because," Addy said unfurling her whip. "What better way is there to find out what is going on?"

"You morons!" Usopp shouted. "We don't know anything about this place!"

"Our opponents are mermen!" Johnny yelled.

Addy shrugged. It could be way worse. They could be fighting another Shichibukai.

"We should plan everything out first," Usopp added in. It looked like he was about to have a heart attack.

Zoro instead turned around to face Ocean, putting one foot on the railing surrounding the ship. "Sorry but I don't do those cowardly things," he stated. "Luffy asked me to bring that woman back. I don't care who the opponents are, but I'll surely get her back."

"We'll get her back," Addy said taking a step towards the railing, leaving Usopp and Johnny on the floor of the dock behind her. "It might be a challenge but we will do it. Let's try to avoid fighting though, the two of us are still injured. And Usopp and Johnny…. are Usopp and Johnny."

Zoro gave her a sideways look. "That should not stop us. Luffy gave us an order."

"I never said we weren't going to fight, only that we should see if talking will work first. If it doesn't then we can move onto the fighting."

Suddenly Addy felt something hit the back of her head and the world went dark.

…

Everything was blurry when she started coming to. Her head felt like it was on fire. Did the fishmen get the jump on them? Zoro sounded like he was right next to her and judging by the growling, he was pissed. She tried to get up but felt something constrict around her.

"What in the world?" she muttered.

"Don't bother, those idiots tied us down," Zoro spat.

Addy lifted her arms but could barely move them, the restraints biting into her skin. As the blurriness faded from her eyes she could tell that they were no longer moving towards Arlong Park but along the coast. Merry's voice was much louder now. Apparently Mango was keeping her informed.

Groaning, she saw Johnny and Usopp looking through binoculars, probably searching for Merry. She was going to kill them when she got out.

It wasn't too long until she spotted Merry's sails, right where Merry said she would be.

"There it is, found her," Usopp yelled excited. "It's the Going Merry." He put the binoculars down and pointed towards her. "But why would she be over there?"

"So Nami is definitely here," Johnny said.

"I told you that!" Addy yelled. "Now we might have lost the advantage of surprise. The fishmen could have spotted us sailing around the coast."

"Untie us!" Zoro shouted straining against the rope. Addy hoped the rope would not tear through the bandages. They were running low as it is.

Instead of doing that, Usopp and Johnny elected to ignore them and stare at a map of the area. They were so unbelievably dead.

"This part's to the east of Arlong Park, Kokoyashi Village," Johnny stated. "But this is weird, why would she anchor so far away from the park?"

"Maybe she didn't want Merry to be captured by fishmen," Addy huffed out. "Or perhaps she could know a better route. For all we know this could be her hometown and she is visiting family. Does it really fricken matter? She is here. Instead of searching the island top to bottom, let's go where she is most likely to be."

"Untie us, damn it," Zoro growled out.

Usopp walked over towards the two of the smiling. "You two got deadly wounds all over you," he pointed out. He knelt down to eye level. Addy had to concede he did have a point about that. Usopp placed his hand on Zoro's chest and she could see him wincing from pain. "So just sit there quietly and rest. I'll take care of the rest." He then stood up and walked back towards Johnny. Addy was pretty sure Zoro was planning numerous ways of killing him, though he would have to get behind her.

"I'll bring the woman back," Usopp shouted somewhat happily. He started laughing giddily.

"Just because we're not at Arlong Park, he sure taking everything in stride," Johnny mumbled.

"Prepare anchor!" Usopp said as the ship turned towards the docks. "Head towards the Going Merry." Johnny went to the back to do so, with Usopp standing in front as if he was the Captain of Mango.

"Yosh. Now it's time for me to name my adventure to this uncharted island." Yep, Usopp went off to imagination land. Her and Zoro were going to be stuck here for a while. She closed her eyes, might as well try to get some sleep if she was stuck here. Zoro was probably thinking the same thing. He was already dozing off. "The title will be, 'The Great Adventures of Captain Usopp'."

Suddenly Usopp ducked below the railing with Johnny. Both looking like their worst nightmare had just appeared before them.

"Let me guess," Addy stated. "There are fishmen on the dock isn't there?"

" _I just told you that,_ " Merry sighed. " _Pay attention before they catch you._ "

"Considering I am tied up it's not going to be that hard for them to do so," Addy replied.

Usopp clapped a hand over her mouth. "Ssh be quiet or they will hear you," he whispered. Addy glared at him, half tempted to bite his hand. "Full speed ahead," he mumbled as Mango sailed straight past the fishmen.

"Aye, Capt'!" Johnny whispered back.

"Why don't we dock here?!" Zoro yelled. Apparently he wasn't asleep. Usopp removed his hand from her mouth in order to hush Zoro with Johnny. This was just sad.

"Didn't you see?" Usopp yelled standing right in front of Zoro and Addy. "There were mermen over there!"

"Really I would have never guessed," Addy said rolling her eyes.

Usopp turned to face her. "They're Arlong's men! You can't blame me!"

Zoro then promptly kicked Usopp in the face. "You don't have the right to be mad!" he growled.

"This area must've already been controlled by Arlong," Johnny said.

"Dear Ocean help me," Addy said as Zoro dropped his legs and Usopp walked away with a bruised face towards the front of Mango. "Did the ginormous tower give it away with the words Arlong Park on it or was it the fishmen?"

"What should we do now?" Johnny asked Usopp .

"How about untie us so that we can go handle them!" Addy yelled.

"'Yosh, let's just say that we couldn't get Nami back," Usopp stated. That's it Addy was going to kill them. She will smooth things over with Captain later.

"Hurry up and untie us, idiot!" Zoro shouted.

Apparently something happened because Johnny and Usopp prepared to jump overboard.

"Hold on you two…" Zoro started.

"Farewell," Usopp yelled before diving into Ocean with Johnny leaving the two of them tied up.

"What do you think the chances are of fishmen approaching Mango right now?" Addy asked as she watched the two of them swim off.

"High," Zoro grumbled struggling to free himself.

" _Actually two are heading towards us right now,"_ Mango said. Addy sighed. Well her entire plan just went belly up. It could not get worse from here.

At that moment two fishmen appeared in front of them jumping out of the sea and landing directly on the dock.

"What? Only two people?" The blue one with a fin on his head and a massive jaw holding razor sharp teeth asked.

"Maybe they just drifted here from somewhere," the other one, who was more tannish with a pink fin running down his head and neck said. Both of them had the same elaborate tattoo on their body though in different places. Was it their mark? For some reason it dimly stirred up something in her mind as if she recognized it from somewhere but there was no point in thinking about it now.

"You can say so…" Zoro stated looking like he was two steps away from bursting out with rage.

"I see…" the tan one said. "I guess the injuries came from the crew of this ship torturing you guys."

"Yes that is exactly what happened," Addy said. Perhaps she could salvage something out of this.

"Anyways, let's bring them to Arlong before anything else," the blue one suggested. Addy held back a sigh. This is not how she wanted things to go at all. She was going to have to put a lot of faith in Zoro. As the fishmen were working on the ropes, Usopp could really tie a knot, he leaned into her as if his injuries were too great to bear.

"Should we attack them now?" he asked keeping his voice low. His sword was within arm's reach and Addy still had her whip attached to her hip.

"No," she whispered. "Let them think we are vulnerable. Since we lost surprise, underestimation should be key here. When we see an opening let's take it. In the meantime do not tell them anything."

Suddenly Addy could feel Mango turning, they were heading back towards the tower. Mango was unnaturally quiet. She was terrified, and Addy felt that she was almost shivering. Addy felt the ropes against her body slacken and soon she was free of the bindings. For about a moment. She felt herself yanked away from Zoro and her arms being pulled back by the blue fishmen. Roughly he tied ropes around her wrists and Addy could see the tan one doing the same for Zoro. She saw his muscles tense but he allowed the fishmen to tie him up though he clearly wasn't happy about it. After that was done their feet were tied together as well. They were not going to escape this easily.

It wasn't long until they reached the gates, with Mango trembling increasing. Addy was worried that she was about to come apart at the seams.

"Hurry and open the gates!" the tan one called out. They were standing in front of her and Zoro facing the gates directly. Addy steeled herself for what they were about to face. As long as they didn't find out what she was then everything would be okay. She regretted at that moment not escaping but there was little she could do about it now. "We've found a suspicious man and woman!"

The gates open right up and they sailed straight into the compound, stopping right in front of Arlong who was sitting on what appeared to be a throne though it looked like a deck chair. Dozens of fishmen surrounded him of all sorts. Okay perhaps they were a little over their heads.

"Well look what we have here?" Arlong stated. "Two little human lovers lost on a cruise." That earned a laugh from the crowd. Zoro gritted his teeth and Addy ducked her head. There was no way Zoro would bow before these guys but if Addy could make them think that she was helpless than they might have a chance.

"What's your purpose here?" Arlong asked glaring at the two of them as if he was considering eating them. Addy bowed her head even further and started trembling, earning another laugh from the crowd. Good her plan was working. Now all Zoro had to do was come up with a lie that…

"We're here to find a woman," Zoro stated. "You half-fish bastard." Addy almost broke her cover to yell at him. Was he taking lessons from Luffy about lying? They might have just blown Nami's cover for Ocean sake. Also adding insult on top… this was not going to go well.

"Oh, this low-life human got guts," Arlong said sounding a little impressed. At that moment the fishmen tossed them onto the shore. Addy hit the concrete with a thud. Pain laced up her side and she winced. Struggling she managed to sit up. Glancing over to Zoro it looked like he managed as well though Addy did not like the look of his bandages. She thought she spotted some blood leaking through. "I'll let that slip by me this time. But you're not allowed to say half-fish ever again! Us mermen are evolved beings who can breathe under water. With these fish abilities, it makes us superior to humans." Addy was genuinely trembling now, though in rage rather than fear. How dare he? Superiority? Addy almost burst out laughing. All races on this planet were created equal, from giants and dwarves, to fishmen and humans, to whatever the people who lived in the sky were called as well as the now extinct race of fire people. While at a glance it may seem like one race has an advantage, it all balances out. The Gods themselves created each race with purpose. Her people's job was to help maintain the balance between the all of them, the Gods, and the world itself. Not that they always did the best job but to insult that and say one race has superiority… Addy was tempted to rip out Arlong's throat right then and there. He was no better than the human nobles.

"With merely the power we behold is proof that we are far better than humans," Arlong continued. "You better get this in your head, the most superior beings on earth are not humans, but us mermen! If humans were to go against us, it'd be defying the laws of nature!"

"I have gotten sick and tired of your theory, Arlong!" a feminine voice called out. Addy would recognize that voice anywhere.

"Nami," she whispered looking up in shock. Zoro seemed stunned as well. Just who was she really?

"Why are you so serious, Nami?" Arlong asked. "You're special. You're our greatest cartographer! You never fail to draw the most accurate maps for me." Addy gritted her teeth to stop herself from yelling. It was then that she noticed the blue tattoo carved on Nami shoulder, it was the same one that all the fishmen possessed. A chill went through Addy… what was going on?

"Our brain compositions are different, so it's obvious why I can," Nami stated though there was an edge to her voice.

"Hey Nami!" Zoro spoke. He was trembling as well as if holding back all the anger and shock. "What does he mean by 'our greatest cartographer'? Why are you so close to this guy?"

"What? You guys know each other?" Arlong asked. He seemed mildly surprised.

"Apparently not," Addy spat out. Screw the charade. They were most likely going to die anyway, might as well go out defiantly.

"They are just another set of victims," Nami said coldly. Addy glared at her. "I gained a lot of loot from them." So that was her plan… they were just pawns… yet if that was the case. Nami walked up towards them and stood right in front of them, standing tall with her fists clenched. Yet her body was still trembling. Addy looked up at her and saw hardness in her eyes yet there was something else there flickering to the surface. Regret? "You don't even realize that you've been deceived. And you still come chasing after me." She kneeled down in front of them the message becoming clearer. This was an apology. "You're just plain stupid. Honestly I expected more particularly from you Addy."

"What can I say?" Addy stated. "After you helped me out with my problem I figured you were trustworthy. But I guess I was completely and totally wrong. I am not sure what is worse right now, the betrayal part or the fact that I actually thought we were friends and you trusted us." That shook up Nami, Addy could see her falter slightly. Addy remembered the conversation they had about dreams, what felt like ages ago. Something else was definitely going on.

"So is this your true nature?" Zoro asked. "And to think that you hated pirates…"

"Surprised?" she asked. "Everything was an act." Was it? Or was this the act right now? "You'll understand better after seeing this…" She showed off the tattoo if full glory and it confirmed Addy suspicions. She truly was a member of Arlong's crew. "I am part of this invincible crew. An officer of Arlong's crew." The fishmen crowded around the two of them as Nami spoke, though it sounded like Nami was trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to convince them. She let out a laugh and Addy knew. There was something more going on here and she would find out what.

* * *

hellspam- Hopefully I will be able to pull it off but that is something we are going to have to wait and see for.

PuddyKatz- I think this arc is going to be full of feels but will see what comes out.

RedHairedOctavia- :P

Sira- Yes the character is Oc. I am pretty sure I have already given his name away and if not then I definitely am going to during this arc.

Sakura Hatsu- Mango was one of the most enjoyable characters to write so far. Right now I sort have two scenarios about what I am going to do with the agreement Zoro and Addy made. It will depend on how the story goes to figure out which one to pick.


	31. Debts Paid in Full Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter is based on episode 32 of the anime. As always please review and let me know what you like. I will answer any questions that I can and I love suggestions. Also I will keep translating the moves Addy uses even if they have been translated previously._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"See? You're following me now?" Nami stated. "From the beginning, I've only been using you."

"Very effectively as well," Addy said earning a confused look from Nami and a glare from Zoro. "What give credit where credit is due."

"You guys aren't too shabby at fighting," Nami replied a smirk on her face. "You were a real useful bunch."

"Now you are just insulting us," Addy remarked. "No need to add salt on the wounds."

Arlong started laughing. Addy wasn't sure if that was a good or bad thing. "You were blindly deceived, weren't you?" he snickered.

"Completely," Addy said though there was something bothering her. Nami was lying through her teeth, the question being what lies she was telling who.

"She can even forget her mother's death for the sake of money. This woman's a cold-blooded witch."

That got to Nami. Her entire face changed, posture became ridged and her fists started shaking as if she was one step away from going up to Arlong and breaking his nose. Did something happen with her mother?

"You shouldn't have underestimated her," Arlong spouted though Addy was starting to drown him out focusing her attention on Nami who seemed to be in her own world. Zoro picked up on it as well.

"I get the picture now," Zoro said. That also seemed to bring Nami back to reality. "I never did trust her from the beginning. I wouldn't be surprised if she was a murderer even." Addy was stunned. Zoro could actually lie. It was the murderer part that gave it away. Zoro was a former bounty hunter and Addy hadn't exactly kept it secret that she has killed before. That wouldn't bother Zoro in the slightest. Was he trying to test her?

"If you understand, just get lost already," Nami spouted. She really wanted them gone, badly. "You're an eyesore!"

Zoro grinned one of his trademark grins, startling Nami and worrying Addy. What exactly was he about to do? Suddenly without warning he kicked off with his feet and sent himself flying into the water behind them.

"ZORO!" Addy screamed out. What was he thinking? With his injuries and being tied up it wouldn't take long before he drowned.

"Why? Why did he jump in the pool all a sudden?" one of the fishmen asked. Addy had no idea and didn't care. Consequences be dammed. She was going to go in and save him. She would deal with the ramifications later. The fishmen were still talking but Addy blocked them out. She had a nakama to save. Preparing to launch herself into the water before it was too late she felt one of the fishmen grab onto her.

"NO, NO, NO, NO, NO!" she screamed her voice going hoarse. "LET ME SAVE HIM!"

"If she is so eager to drown with him let her," Arlong said waving her off. "But not before he is good and dead first."

"NO," she cried out. "LET ME GO YOU BASTARD! I WILL KILL YOU!" At that moment Addy saw Nami take off her shoes and jump into the water with a splash. Everyone looked as stunned as Addy was. Whatever was going on Addy was certain Nami wasn't going to break her con. She came out of the water with Zoro in tow still breathing. Addy let out a sigh of relief.

"Hey! What are you doing, Nami?" one of the fishmen asked. That was a very good question but Addy found she didn't care. Nami was nakama and that was the only thing that mattered. As soon as Luffy got here they would solve her problems and never look back.

"What do you think you're doing?" Nami asked looking straight at the ground.

Zoro let out a hacking cough before replying, "Same to you, what do you think you're doing?" He turned his head towards her and had a grin on his face as if he just won something. "You can't even let one person die in front of you. Quit the act already." Was that what Zoro was trying to accomplish? Make Nami break? That same look when Arlong spoke about her mother came over her. "Help me here, idiot! I thought I was a goner there."

"Stop messing with me!" Nami cried out stopping on his back. Zoro groaned in pain and it made Addy wince. He could not take much of a beating, not without serious consequences. Perhaps that is why Nami easily picked him up by the throat having him stand up fully with his feet planted on the ground. "If you get involved with me anymore, you'll die!"

Addy could only stare as the events in front of her unfolded. "I wonder about that…" Zoro said.

"Wonderful bandage you got there," Nami stated.

Addy eyes went wide, if she messed with that… "Nami," she said firmly hoping to grab her attention, though unfortunately it was all focused on Zoro.

"I can't afford new clothes. This is a substitute." What in the bloody sea was Zoro trying to do? Die and force Nami to live with the guilt? Quickly and efficiently she punched him in the gut, causing him to keel over in pain. He collapsed to the ground writhing. Addy looked over in horror and Nami finally noticed… her eyes going wide for a second before returning to normal. The fishman holding Addy let her go and she made her way to Zoro as best as she could glaring at Arlong the entire time. Nami stood there for a moment before turning to walk away, back towards the door she came from.

"Hey, Nami. What are you planning for them?" Arlong asked.

"Lock them up. I'll take care of it," she stated bluntly. Addy felt relief flow through her. They were most likely not going to die quiet yet.

"Arlong, Arlong," one of the fishmen called out coming in from a side gate.

"Mmm," Arlong responded looking towards the newcomer. "What's wrong, bud?"

"Forgive me. There was a long-nosed guy who was with him, but I failed to capture him."

Ocean damn him. Usopp got himself discovered, Addy thought, her mind whirling with ideas about how to get them out of all of this. So far she was drawing blanks.

"I think he fled into Cocoyashi Village," the fishmen continued, "but…"

"Cocoyashi Village?" Arlong questioned. "Good timing. I got some errands there. Shall I pay them a visit?" He seem to have directed the question at Nami though for what purpose Addy had no idea. There were still too many unanswered questions.

"Do what you want," Nami said before going back to wherever she came from. Arlong grinned and turned back towards her and Zoro before jabbing his thumb towards the tower. Addy felt herself being picked up roughly and slung over a shoulder like a sack. Zoro was getting the same treatment.

"Oi, I can walk you know," she grumbled.

"Don't want to take any chances. Nami has special plans for you," the fishman said. It wasn't long until they reached the dungeons which of course were located in the basement. Addy was basically thrown into a cell and skirted across the floor hitting the wall. She groaned in pain. That was not helping her shoulder or ankle any. Zoro got similar treatment though out of sheer luck or perhaps pity they were put together in the same cell, the fishmen laughing as they climbed back up the stairs. Surprisingly she still had her whip on her. Perhaps they did not recognize it as a weapon.

"You alright?" she asked Zoro as she hauled herself up. Leaning against the wall helped alleviate some of the pain. Zoro did the exact same thing though unlike her he was panting with the effort.

"I should be asking you that," he grumbled as if each breath was a struggle. Addy scooted over to him to watch his condition.

"I am not the person who just almost drowned and then gotten beaten up for good measure." Once she got to him she laid her head on his chest to listen to his heartbeat. Luckily it was still going strong. She lifted her head up to see Zoro blushing and a faint smile traced her lips. At that moment she resisted the urge to nibble on his neck, but thought that she would wait for a better opportunity. Being locked in a dungeon was not the best place to start having sex. "But what were you thinking?"

"I wanted to see what side Nami was truly on."

Addy could have smacked him right then and there if she wasn't tied up. Were all of her nakama idiots? Addy could only hope that Sanji had a few brain cells to rub together though from first impressions….

"Zoro…. I already knew that she was with us, well sort of with us. My questions is more the why is she doing all this."

He looked at her skeptically an eyebrow raised. She sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Look okay remember when Nami said that she gained a lot of loot from us?"

"She did take our treasure. What is your point?"

"Yes that is true but if she was only gathering treasure for Arlong and holds no loyalty towards us why didn't she take my locket? She would have had the time right then. But she didn't, she didn't even try to."

"Perhaps she figured that you would hunt her down for the rest of her life if she took it."

"She also knows that Arlong probably could have just killed me then and taken it that way."

"Maybe it's not worth that much." Addy gave Zoro a death glare and he flinched back. "Moneywise I mean… not that it isn't."

"You can stop digging yourself into a hole," Addy stated. She took a deep breath. "Most people who see it think that as well, which is good as it means people aren't trying to constantly rob me, however it is actually worth 1,000,000,000 beli.

Zoro's jaw dropped and he stared at her chest where the locket laid under her clothes. "Where did you?" he asked swallowing a lump in his throat.

"It was a gift from Riley. She gave it to me when I was 10 after…" She raised her head to the ceiling not looking at Zoro tears springing to her eyes. Her body was all twitchy and she could feel chills overcoming her. The cravings had come back. It had been too long since she had drunk anything. That is why all the memories were coming back. "Anyway, while it doesn't seem valuable at first a decent treasure hunter would immediately know it's worth and Nami is more than a decent treasure hunter. Therefore the only reason she didn't take it was because she knew what it meant to me."

"But where did Riley get it?" Zoro asked quietly.

She brought her head back down and looked towards Zoro seeing the concern on his face. "That Zoro is a long story," she said.

"It's not like we don't have the time."

Addy shook her head the twitching becoming worse. She could feel herself sweating and her stomach was twisting inside.

"I… can't," she sputtered staring at the floor. "Not… now."

The clanging of the jail cell door interrupted her thoughts. She looked up and saw Nami standing there holding a knife. In one quick movement she cut the ropes binding Zoro before moving onto her. Addy rubbed her wrists and rolled her shoulders getting all the kinks out. Being tied up did not help her injuries in the slightest.

Just as quickly as she arrived, Nami turned to leave but not before turning to look at them. "Leave quickly," she stated. "Before Arlong gets back." She left and there was another clank and Zoro white sword landed on the floor in front of them as well as a bottle of booze.

"Praise her," Addy said getting up and walking over towards it. She glugged it down and felt her body return to her. The tremors ceased and her mind fogged. It was doing its job.

Zoro picked up his blade, taking it out of its sheath and examining it closely before placing it back on his hip.

"So," he said grinning at her. "Shall we have some fun? She told us to escape but the only thing we have to do lies here. We did promise Luffy that we'd get her back didn't we."

"Absolutely," she said sporting a similar grin. They started walking up the stairs back outside. There was a crowd of fishmen all staring at them in shock and anger.

"Do you want the right or the left?" she asked.

Zoro looked around at the fishmen as if deciding which ones were tougher. "Left," he stated walking towards that side his white blade shining under the sun.

"Right for me then," Addy replied. Unfurling her whip and cracking it. This caused a few of the fishmen to step back. Her grin grew wider. She was always in the mood for a fight. Wrapping her whip around the closest fishmen she twisted it. "Lautan Pakem," she called out and the guy screeched. "Kembali," she said as the whip unfurled itself and the fishmen collapsed like a house of cards. That got everyone's attention and soon enough she was in the thick of it. Her whip dancing around her fluidly cutting into everything in its path. The fishmen could not get anywhere near her, her whip cutting through their scales like a knife through clay. She took a chance to glance at Zoro as saw that almost all of his guys were down. She could not have that.

She felt her ankle twinge and Addy knew she was going to have to end this quickly. Her whip started spinning a circle, horizontally and as soon she was spinning like a top as well. "Lautan pusaran air." The movement of both her and the whip combined demolished those around her. She could feel the blood as it landed on her. Ceasing her spin she could see that everyone around her was done. Fishmen were strong but most were not exactly durable. Her ankle however was really aching. Perhaps she over did it. She turned to face Zoro who was finishing his last guy with a sword slash before turning to face her.

"Now what?" she called walking towards him, carefully stepping over the bodies.

"Things are getting complicated," he replied. "We still have awhile before Luffy will get here."

"Might as well stick around here," she answered. "Captain is most likely going to come here first."

"Usopp is still out there." Addy groaned. Right. Who knew where that idiot was. They should probably go find him. After all he had no idea what was going on with Nami and if he did get himself in trouble he might not be able to handle it.

"There is also Arlong to contend with, when he gets back here," Addy said. "I figure we should save someone for Captain. Don't want to make his journey completely pointless. Besides whatever is going on, I get the feeling that Captain needs to fight him. There is more at stake here than we realize."

* * *

Moves

Lautan Pakem- Ocean Grip

Kembali- Return

Lautan pusaran air- Ocean Whirlpool

Review Responses

hellspam- Now the pressure is on. Honestly this has to be one of my favorite arcs as well at least in early One Piece. This is also probably going to be the hardest one to write so far but I have plenty of ideas.

PuddyKatz- Glad to hear it. :)

Sira- I love suggestions so please keep them coming. As for seeing him in the flesh well all I can say is that is already in the works.


	32. Debts Paid in Full Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _I am just going to keep this one short. It is based on episode 33. Review and enjoy._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Too slow," Zoro complained sitting in Arlong's deck chair. "When's Luffy gonna come?"

"I have no idea," Addy replied getting out of the water. After nabbing some alcohol from the guys they just beat up and a quick dip in the water to help soothe the rope burns she turned, overlooking Ocean. There was not a ship in sight and eventually Arlong was going to return. As much as she wanted to get Nami back, she didn't exactly want to fight Arlong herself, not in her condition. Being tied up did nothing to help her injuries. Addy rolled her bad shoulder. She was going to have to get a doctor to take a look at her. Zoro too, no matter how much he complained.

"If he doesn't come in the next five minutes, I'm going to die of boredom!"

"Oh I am sure there is something the two of us could do while we wait," Addy teased walking towards him swaying her hips. Zoro blushed and ducked his head. It was really easy to rile him up. She would file that knowledge away for later.

"Oooh oooh oh!" A voice called out. Addy turned and looked around trying to see where the noise was coming from. Over the wall surrounding the compound she saw what looked like a fishing rod moving up and down erratically. Apparently they missed one. "This one's awesome! Even I, a member of Arlong's elite, Hachi-Hatchan can't pull it up. It must be a super great fish! I don't know from where you've come but your gusto is East Blue's best." A figure rose up from behind the wall. Addy had to hold back a laugh. Apparently he had managed to hook himself.

"Wh… What the? What?" Hatchan said clearly startled. "Oh it was myself." The fishing rods broke apart at that moment with a sprang. She signaled Zoro to come closer. Might as well see who they were dealing with. Looking over the wall they saw that he was an octopus fishman. "Truly, my gusto is East Blue's best. Anything strange?" At that moment Hatchan looked up at them. Addy stared blankly at him for a second.

"Definitely strange," Zoro stated.

"You think?" Addy responded. "I mean there are certainly weirder possibilities."

"Huh? Who the heck are you two?" Hatchan asked the two of them. He suddenly pointed all six of his arms towards himself. "M-Me? I'm Hatchan. Call me Hachi."

"We know, you announced your name like a minute ago," Addy drawled tapping her fingers against the wall.

"Are you a merman too?" Zoro asked. Addy rolled her eyes. What else would he be? Her crew needed to get out more.

"Of course! Of course!" Hachi said waving his arms in front of him. "I'm a charming octopus merman. Do I look like a human?"

"I guess not," Zoro replied watching Hachi as he swayed back and forth.

"Are you with the Marines or guests?" Hachi asked. Addy looked up in alarm. Marines, there were Marines here of all places? Addy could barely contain a smirk. It had been awhile since she fought any Marines. Her hand glided over her whip. Good times were ahead of her. Zoro seemed to have noticed her good mood as he looked at her quizzically. She shot him a smile and he grinned back. A good fight was in store. Marines were always fun to fight if only for the satisfaction of knowing that she is making the Navy's day worse with each one she defeats.

"Guests," Addy responded smoothly. Might as well keep there presence hidden from the Marines for as long as possible and from Arlong. Don't want him figuring out who they actually were.

Zoro looked back over the carnage they had caused. "Yeah, we're guests."

"But you know, Arlong not here right now, right?" Hachi asked.

"Yeah. Where'd he go?"

"I heard that there was a long nosed stranger that was trying to run away." Usopp. Addy groaned internally. Could they leave him alone for even a minute without him getting into trouble? This is what he gets for tying them up and then abandoning them. "They say another two was caught and held here though. He went to Cocoyashi Village to catch him."

Zoro gave Addy a look, and she nodded. They better go save his dumb ass before he got into more trouble. After all Addy still had to wring him for leaving them on Mango.

"That Cocoyashi Village, how do I get there?" Zoro asked. The two of them jumped down off the wall to stand next to Hachi who was fishing with three poles.

"Get in," he said pointing to what looked like a floating pot. Addy raised her eyebrow at that.

"You serious?" she asked wondering if there was some ulterior motive. Well if he tried to drown them at least she would have the advantage.

"Guests, right? I'll take you guys there."

"Well that is nice of you…" Addy still looked unsure but Zoro hopped into the pot and it didn't immediately sink. She carefully got inside. Surprisingly there was enough room for both of them to stand, they weren't squished together. Sure enough Hachi leapt into the water and started pulling them at a brisk pace. She glanced at Zoro but he remained calm.

"If something happens you'll handle it," he stated simply. Addy nodded and relaxed letting out a sigh. This could go wrong very quickly but Zoro and Captain trusted her to get the job done. Who was she to let them down?

Luckily they were soon back near the dock which they passed when they first got here. Zoro and her casually got out without any incident.

"We've arrived," Hachi said getting out of the water. "Cocoyashi Village." He pointed in the direction with his various arms. "Arlong should be here, in this village."

"Yeah, thanks," Zoro said. Addy gave Hachi a nod.

"Don't mention it, later," Hachi replied jumping back into the water and quickly swimming off, most likely heading back to his base. However he stopped not far away from the dock. "Oh! I didn't ask for your names."

Addy cringed and so did Zoro. Shit, she was hoping that they would get away with that.

"Me? You want to hear my name again?" Oh thank Ocean, the fishman was an idiot. "It's Hatchan. Come again!" He waved at them before once again swimming off.

"Strange guy," Zoro muttered.

"Bit of a moron," Addy stated. "Though I guess it did come in handy. I suppose we should head to Cocoyashi Village."

"Right," Zoro said before running off in the completely wrong direction. Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. This was going to be a pain.

"Zoro," she called catching up to him. "Cocoyashi Village is this way." Addy pointed in the completely opposite direction they were going.

"I know," Zoro grumbled before changing course for another direction entirely.

"No wait… Just let me lead okay?"

"Suit yourself." Addy thanked the Ocean for her good fortune before turning in the right direction Zoro following behind her, though knowing him…

"Hold my hand," she said.

Zoro stopped completely in his tracks and stared at her as if she said she was a time traveling wizard.

"….What?" Zoro replied looking immensely confused.

"Hold my hand. That way if we run into any more fishmen we can just pretend we are a couple on a walk."

"Are you sure? I mean…"

"Zoro hold my damn hand!"

He grasped it immediately. His hand was calloused, probably from all the sword work. It was also warm and tight, he had a pretty strong grip. Zoro's hand seem to just meld into hers… why was she noticing all this? Addy shook her head clearing away her thoughts before heading in the right direction. Zoro was staring at everything besides her, as if distracting himself from this situation. She did notice however a faint blush and she let out a smile. Despite being a demon, the guy was an absolute dork.

"Your hand is soft," Zoro said sounding surprised.

"What?" she asked quizzically.

"Your hand is soft. You do have some rough patches but they seem to be smooth over."

"I sort of need them to be. The whip glides easier when smooth, it doesn't catch on dead skin. Sea salt scrub. Does absolute wonders for the skin."

"Have you thought about wearing gloves?"

"Yeah but then they would get in the way when I swim. Besides look at me. I don't even wear shoes most of the time. What makes you think I would wear gloves?"

Zoro nodded as if satisfied with the answer and Addy rolled her eyes. 'Dork' she thought.

Apparently the island was also small as after several minutes of walking they saw the roofs of buildings poking out of the trees. It was only when they were in the town proper did she let go of Zoro's hand.

It was a nice simple village. Clean, pleasant, completely ordinary with townsfolk who only wanted to go about their lives. A perfect place for an extortion racket.

She walked up to one of the buildings where an average guy with brown hair, khaki shorts and collared shirt was standing. Zoro was following behind her cautiously, keeping an eye out for any danger. "Excuse me?" she asked.

"What can I do for you Miss," he asked though he seemed slightly nervous. Perhaps they did not get many visitors.

"We are looking for a guy. Black poofy hair, dark skin, really long nose."

"Ah yes I saw him," he said. "I am sorry to say that your friend was captured by Arlong."

Zoro slammed his hand into the building, right next to the guy's head. Apparently asking questions for Zoro meant putting the fear of Ocean into people. They guy looked terrified. It also happened to attract a crowd of people.

"What was that?" Zoro asked. "Usopp got caught."

"Zoro relax," Addy said turning towards Zoro. "There is no need to give the man a heart attack. Now what is this about Usopp being captured?"

"He was just taken to Arlong Park," the man stated.

"That man was brave enough to go against Arlong," another guy chimed in.

"That's…. somewhat surprising," Addy responded. Perhaps Usopp was growing a backbone.

"I'm sure he's been killed already," the guy added in. Addy expression darkened and her body stiffened. She took a shot from her flask. If Usopp was dead… Ocean have mercy. Fishmen may be his creation, but she was the top of that chain.

Zoro meanwhile removed his hand away from the original guy's head and straightened muscles tense. The guy slid down the wall relieved.

"Shit," Zoro said looking at his hand. "So in other words, he was caught while I was killing time."

"While, we were killing time," Addy pointed out. "I was also with you. It's both our faults."

Zoro clenched his fist before taking off, Addy quickly following and taking the lead.

"Usopp! Stay alive!" Zoro muttered to himself, though Addy agreed with the sentiment. She had no idea how she was going to explain this to Captain if something happened or Merry. Merry… Merry would be devastated. She loves Usopp.

The two of the quickly found a path leading out of the village. It was a simple dirt trail that snaked around the coast. Addy hoped it went directly to Arlong's base, they should have asked for directions.

Suddenly there sounded like a large crash and Addy felt a slight disturbance in Ocean. All the birds in the area started squawking and flying off. The two of them stopped in the middle of the path. There was definitely something going on. A loud rumbling started echoing in the forest. Leaves were falling from the trees and everything was shaking. Listening for a second the rumbling seemed to be getting louder as if it was heading directly for them.

Addy quickly yanked Zoro out of the way as a ship came flying past them pushing them both to the ground. The two of them got up and dusted themselves off before glancing at each other.

"Luffy," the both said simultaneously while running towards where the ship had crashed.

After destroying several rice paddies the ship ran straight into a cliff. Addy hoped everyone was still alive. That would be another problem they would have to deal with. Making their way to the wreckage she swore she heard Luffy laughing.

"We've arrived. We've arrived," Luffy said as Addy and Zoro approached him. He was brushing the dirt off his straw hat. Sanji was sitting right next to him looking disheveled. At this moment he was probably wondering what sort of hell he got himself into. Yosaku was buried in the rubble behind them.

"You bastard…. What the heck were you doing?" Zoro asked. "You have any idea how long we waited for you?"

"What do you mean?" Luffy asked, placing his hat back on his head. "We've come to take Nami back. Still haven't found her?"

"Um actually," Addy said rubbing the back of her head. "The situation seems to be more complicated than we realized."

"Oh yeah. Where are Usopp and Johnny?" Luffy asked.

"Usopp!" Zoro said. "That's right! This isn't the time to be idling around."

"What happened?" Luffy asked as Zoro started running off.

"Long story short," Addy stated. "Usopp got captured by Arlong and we need to save him."

"If we don't hurry he'll get killed," Zoro said turning back around to face them.

"He's dead," a voice called out. Addy turned to where it was coming from. Her eyes grew dark and she felt her blood pumping into her ears. A metallic taste entered her mouth and all the alcohol in the world could not remove it.

"What did you say?" she said, turning to face Johnny her voice chill. He was collapsed on his knees and it looked like he had been crying. He was panting heavily as if he had run for several miles.

"It's too late," he sputtered.

Zoro snarled, a hand gripped on the top of his sword. Yosaku looked confused while Sanji had his one eye on him as if processing the news. Luffy was standing their wide eyed like a puppy… and Addy.

Addy was barely keeping herself together. Her blood was boiling and she felt her rage try to consume her. Those fishmen were dead. All of them. Addy didn't know what was going on and at this moment she didn't care. They killed her nakama. Long, slow, painful death was all that waited them.

"Usopp is dead," Johnny repeated. His hands were on the ground and his head bowed. His whole body was trembling. He was clearly in shock, punching the ground out of grief. "He was killed." He lifted his head back up and stared at each of them tears dripping from his eyes. "By Nami."

Zoro stood there as if his entire world had ended, his eyes wide, jaw slack with shock. Yosaku mouth was also wide, surprise filled his eyes. Sanji didn't even move, too busy processing the information, or perhaps he didn't care. He had only just joined them. Luffy eyes seem to take up most of his face, mouth hung open. Addy did the only thing she could at that moment. She laughed.

* * *

PuddyKatz- OTP... I was so happy to read that. There will be a lot more of them as they try to figure out there relationship.

hellspam- Those little fight scenes are actually one of the hardest parts to write. I don't think I do fight scenes overly well. Something I am going to have to improve since this is One Piece.

Sira- That is an interesting idea, better than my current one. Though you might have another suggestion once you actually meet him.


	33. Debts Paid in Full Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter is based on episode 34. So far this might be the hardest arc to write so far. Not to say I haven't being enjoying it. Hopefully it gets easier from here._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Is that the truth?" Yosaku called out. The birds were twittering and there was a light breeze which completely offset the Straw Hats mood, except for Addy who was still laughing. She was chuckling the entire time they walked away from the crash and back towards the main path. Chances were that the fishmen were going to investigate and they didn't want to exactly run into them at this moment.

"Yeah, it's horrible…" Johnny replied crossing his legs right in the middle of the path leading to the village. "That woman's a witch! In order to obtain some hidden treasure in Cocoyashi Village for herself. She was kissing up to Arlong! And for that purpose, she killed without even thinking about it. She's a rotten-hearted low-life! We've been fooled all this time!"

Addy stopped laughing and growled uncoiling her whip, however Luffy beat her to it. He grabbed Johnny off the ground holding him by the collar of his shirt.

"Bastard!" Luffy growled his straw hat falling to the ground. "Say that one more time and I'll kill you!"

"Stop it Luffy, this has nothing to do with Johnny," Zoro said stepping him. He was right of course but that didn't make her want to deck Johnny any less.

"You don't have to believe me," Johnny whimpered. "But I saw it with my own eyes! I saw what she did to Usopp."

"You're making up crap!" Luffy shouted shaking Johnny. Luffy was angry, really angry. Like Bandit King level angry. "There's no way Nami would kill Usopp! We're friends!"

"But I…"

Despite the commotion Addy felt someone else approach. Turning she saw Nami standing there, right behind Luffy holding her staff.

"Ah good," Addy said. "Care to clear this up?"

"Who's friends, Luffy?" Nami asked glancing towards Addy who only shook her head. Addy was not going to back her up on this. It was between her and Luffy.

"Nami!" Luffy said dropping Johnny unceremoniously.

"Why did you come here?" Nami asked.

"What are you taking about?" Luffy responded. "You're my companion. I came by to get you." He said that as if it was the simplest thing in the world.

"How annoying."

"Nami?"

"Friends? Don't make me laugh. You're more like a pathetic group of cooperators, don't you think?"

Luffy made a noise of surprise while Johnny started getting up.

"Why you…" he yelled trembling with anger. He ran at her and pointed his finger directly at her. "I saw it with my own eyes. How… how dare you kill Usopp!"

"And your point is? You wanna try killing me to avenge him?"

"That would be rather pointless, considering you didn't kill him," Addy stated stepping forward to face Nami.

Nami seemed taken aback but recovered quickly. "I knew Luffy would be naïve but you Addy… I thought you would know better," she said harshly.

"You are many things Nami, but a killer isn't one of them. Trust me on that." She took out her locket. The sun rays glinted off of it. "This is proof enough of that and if you didn't kill me for this than you certainly did not kill Usopp."

"What?" Johnny muttered. Addy rolled her eyes at him.

"I'll tell you one thing," Nami said to Addy. "Right now Arlong wants to kill 'Roronoa Zoro and his posse.' All because you and Zoro went and did something stupid. You guys may have these monster-like powers, But you're no match for real monsters. Hang around this island long enough, and you guys will be killed for sure. Well… it doesn't concern me though."

Zoro growled and Sanji looked at Nami as if she was the most beautiful woman on earth.

"Her cool look is still so charming!" he sputtered. The guy was a love sick puppy. "And Addy is wonderful under pressure. Hi Nami dear, Addy sweet! It's me, it's me, remember me? Let's go on a cruise together!" He was waving his arms up and down trying to get their attention. Addy only sighed, she sort of forgot about that quirk of his.

"You stay out of this!" Zoro butted in. "You'll just complicate things!"

"What did you say!?" Oh this was the start of a beautiful friendship. "My love is always a hurricane! Hey! Listen to me when I'm talking!"

Zoro turned away from Sanji to face Nami who remained impassive. "Where is Usopp?"

"At the bottom of the sea," she replied.

"Are you really going to keep this up?" Addy asked. "We are not going to believe this lie no matter how many times you say it."

"It's true."

"Why you!" Zoro yelled rushing past Addy and drawing his sword. "Quit your bullshit!"

At that moment Sanji aimed a kick right for Zoro's head. He barely managed to dodge it. Drawing his sword he turned to face Sanji.

"Do swordsmen attack women too?" Sanji asked. Oh no… he isn't one of those guys… Addy thought. Those guys that insist on protecting women even if said woman is trying to kill them. "Roronoa Zoro?"

"What did you say!?" Zoro responded. "You don't even know what's going on so don't interfere!"

Sanji chuckled. "After an emotional loss, of course you're irritable."

"Oi. You better watch what you say."

"Mind your own business, bastard."

"Hey," Yosaku called out. "Don't be bickering at an important time like this!"

"That's right." Nami added in. "If you're going to fight, do it off the island."

"Why do you want to get us off the island so badly?" Addy asked.

"Your outsiders," Nami replied quickly. "Quit sticking your nose into this island's business. You still don't get it? The only reason I got close to you guys is for the money, nothing else."

"Then again I ask, why didn't you take my locket? You know how valuable it is."

"Simple, I didn't want you hunting me down for it. That would have been a larger pain."

"If that is the case, than why didn't you kill me? If you killed Usopp like you said than it should have been an easy task. Sneak up on me while I was asleep. It would be no trouble."

"I…." Nami seemed to be faltering. She looked Addy straight in the eye as if begging her to back off. Addy knew she had no answer. Perhaps… perhaps they should leave. For Nami's sake.

"Where's Merry?" Addy asked softly. Nami looked relieved at the change of topic. It came off of her in waves, though Addy was sure that she was the only one who noticed.

"I'll return the ship," Nami stated clearly. "So why don't you go find a navigator and head to the Grand Line. Go find One Piece or whatever…" She swung her stick towards them. "Just get the hell out of here! You're a bother! Goodbye."

"Nami," Luffy said softly. Everything was silent except for the twittering birds. Luffy closed his eyes and fell backwards onto the ground, startling all of them.

"Captain?" Addy asked.

"I'm going to sleep," he stated simply. Well I guess that was the answer. They were gonna stay here.

"Sleep?" Johnny said flabbergasted.

"Right now?" Yosaku asked. "In the middle of the road?"

"I don't feel like leaving the island…" Luffy responded. "I don't care what's happening here… I'm a bit sleepy. So I'm sleeping."

Yosaku made what sounded like a chocking noise while Johnny just stood over him trying to form a coherent sentence. Zoro had a hand on his forhead feeling frustrated with the entire situation. Not that Addy blamed him. Luffy was just snoring away.

"Then…" Nami said, clutching her gloved fist. Addy wondered why she was wearing only one glove. Was she hiding something? "DO WHATEVER YOU WANT! GO AHEAD AND DIE!" She then ran off in the opposite direction as fast as she could.

"Now what?" Johnny asked.

"Now we wait until Captain wakes up and tells us what to do." Addy said going over to the rice paddies and sitting in the water. Zoro sat down in the middle of the road as well, close to Luffy while Sanji took shade under a nearby tree.

"Hey Zoro," Johnny said. "What the hell are you thinking!?"

"You're the target of Arlong and his gang, you know!" Yosaku stated. "Why don't you run away!?"

"Now that we know Nami is that kind of low-life, there's no reason for you to stay on this island!"

"Reason to stay on this island?" Zoro responded. "There is a reason." He looked over at Luffy. "He's still staying here."

"Are you saying that even you're thinking of getting Nami back as a partner?"

"Of course," Addy said. The two of them turned towards her. "If you were paying attention to the conversation you would have realized… Nami made you see what she wanted you or more precisely what she wanted Arlong to see. Besides… until Captain says so, she is still nakama."

"I don't care what happens," Zoro said. "He decides who becomes our navigator."

"And if he picked Nami," Addy chimed in. "Then Nami it will be."

After a moment of silence from the two of them, they calmed down.

"Okay," Johnny said. "I understand. Although it's only been a short while. Our job to bring you guys here is done."

"I'm with him," Yosaku added in. "I don't want to die in vain."

"Okay," Zoro answered. "Take care."

"Well then, until we meet again…" Johnny said.

"The rest of you take care too," Yosaku stated.

Addy waved them off glad that they were leaving. They were nice guys but not much too them.

"You guys too," Zoro responded.

A nice breeze picked up and Addy sighed. Perhaps she could use a nap as well. Taking a shot out of her flask she laid down in the rice paddy letting the water soak into her skin. If it wasn't for the fact that a bunch of angry fishmen wanted to kill them right now Addy would consider this a relaxing trip.

"Hey," Sanji said. Addy sat back up, her clothes drying instantly. "Why was Nami dear crying back then?"

"That woman… crying?" Zoro asked quizzically. Addy was puzzled as well. When was she crying?

"She was crying in her heart."

"Keh. What? Crying tears of guilt for killing Usopp?"

Addy threw a rock at Zoro but it missed him by a mile. Her aim was awful. Though it still got his attention

"Was no one paying any attention to the conversation?!" she yelled. "She didn't kill Usopp. I thought I proved that." She pinched the bridge of her nose.

"Smart and beautiful," Sanji swooned. Addy attempted to throw a rock at him. It missed him completely. "Like Addy sweet was saying, you seriously think Nami dear killed that long-nose?"

The two of them waited for Zoro's answer but it seemed like he wasn't giving one. He just sat there in silence.

There was several thump sounds in a row and Addy looked up the path to see a figure approaching. She smiled, looks like this whole issue was going to be resolved shortly.

"Nami didn't kill him," Zoro finally answered not noticing that Usopp was approaching from behind him. "Is that what you want to say?"

"Isn't that right?" Sanji responded. Addy's crew really needed some situational awareness training.

"I dunno. I made that little servant lose it once already. She may have just killed him in a fit of rage." No Addy thought. Nami would not do that… her on the other hand…

That comment however seemed to have ticked Sanji off. "Little servant!? WHATS LITTLE ABOUT NAMI DEAR'S CHEST?" What in the Ocean was he talking about? Sanji ran straight at Zoro attempting to attacking him… at precisely the exact same moment that Usopp was running up. After escaping from Arlong and being reunited with his crew the first thing that happens is him getting kicked and slammed in the face with a sword.

Addy laughed, getting out of the rice paddy and walking towards them. Well it looked like Usopp was dead now. Then there was a groaning sound coming from Usopp and Addy breathed a sigh of relief.

"He's still alive…?" Zoro asked surprised. "Nope. I think he's dead now."

"Then you get to explain it to Captain," Addy said now standing beside them. As soon as Zoro put down his sword and Sanji his foot Usopp collapsed into a pile. The three of them stood above him looking down. Just then Luffy decided to wake up.

"USOPP!" he screamed holding Usopp in his arms. "DID NAMI DO THIS TO YOU!?" He started shaking the poor dying man.

"No, uh, sorry," Sanji said sheepishly. Well at least he was admitting to it. Addy was just going to blame it on fishmen. "That was him and me."

"IT WAS YOU!" Zoro replied angrily.

Usopp then managed to regain his senses, at least enough to notice where he was. "Luffy, you're here."

"Yeah, a little while back," Luffy answered.

"I'm here too, nice to meet you!" Sanji said introducing himself.

Usopp jumped up and got right into Sanji's face. "I'll kill you someday!" Usopp yelled. Yep Sanji was going to be a great additional member of the crew.

"Hey, you're still fine even after that?" Sanji clapped him on the shoulder.

"Shut the hell up!"

"Oh yeah, you were killed by Nami right?" Zoro asked.

"Clearly," Addy said. "It's his ghost talking to us from beyond the grave right now."

"REALLY?!" Luffy asked.

"No…" Addy answered. Someone needed to teach Luffy about sarcasm.

"Damn him, Johnny was lying after all," Luffy said getting up. The four of them basically surrounded Usopp at this point.

"Actually, there is some truth to it," Usopp answered. They all looked at him eagerly awaiting an answer. "It's more the opposite. Nami saved my life. You see I was captured by Arlong and his crew. They were going to kill me no matter what. So Nami bluffed the 'killing me off' part so I could escape. I think there's a reason for her being with the mermen pirates."

"Of course," Sanji said.

"So what do we do now?" Zoro asked turning towards Luffy for direction. "Rush Arlong Park?"

"If the two of us weren't injured, I say we should go for it," Addy said. "But in the condition we are in…"

"Hold on!" Usopp interrupted. "Before that we should ask Nami for a better explanation!"

"Either way, it's useless," another female voice called out. They all turned and spotted a tan woman with light blue hair and tattoos covering her right arm. "No matter what you guys do, Arlong's reign won't end."

"Nojiko!" Usopp said.

"You know who this is?" Addy asked.

"Yeah, Nami's older sis."

"Nami dear's older sister?" Sanji said bursting out into heart eyes. Addy could swear she saw hearts floating around his head. "She's so pretty!"

"What do you mean, 'It's useless?'" Zoro asked.

"Do us a favor," she responded. "Don't meddle with this village's business anymore. Leave Nami alone. I'll tell you the reason why."

"The reason?" Sanji stated.

"You mean why she stays with the mermen?" Usopp asked.

"Yes," Nojiko answered. "Once you hear the reason you must leave this place."

"All right, then tell us the reason or whatever."

"I'll pass," Luffy said. "I don't care about her past."

"I will as well," Addy indicated. She caught up with her captain and the two of them started walking off away from the group.

"Where are you going?" Sanji asked.

"A walk," Luffy answered.

"What do you mean a walk?" Ussop asked.

"Well I believe that is where you put one foot in front of the other usually in some direction," Addy snarked.

"You're not going to listen to the story?"

""If she wants me to know about her past than Nami will tell me herself. I don't delve into people's pasts and they don't delve into mine."

Together Luffy and her continued to walk back to the village. Whatever may have happened with Nami it isn't going to change a thing. Captain wants her back so they will get her back, at any cost.

* * *

hellspam- I think that might be my favorite joke in the whole series so far. It just encompasses both Addy and Zoro.

PuddyKatz- That is pretty much Addy's thought process.

RedHairedOctavia- Teasing Zoro is so much fun. As for the great mystery to what Addy is, well some hints will start showing up in this arc.


	34. Debts Paid in Full Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _I hate this chapter. I really do, I think this might be the worst one I have written. I just cannot write serious Luffy well. It was a complete pain but now it is done. Hopefully the next one will be better. This is based on episode 35. As always please review and let me know what you like or what I can improve on or if you have any suggestions. Seriously I love suggestions._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

The walk was in silence with only Wind blowing, the occasionally bird and their footsteps interrupting. Naturally it was Luffy who broke the stillness.

"Addy," he said. "You said you were hurt?"

"Yeah, on the way here we ran into some poachers. Unfortunately they did get a couple of lucky shots in. They wrecked my shoulder and ankle pretty badly but it's nothing I can't handle. I will be alright when the next serious fight occurs."

"They can't hurt you anymore?"

The question genuinely surprised Addy. If she did lose to them what would Luffy want to do? Track them down himself? She glanced towards Luffy and saw a dark edge to him. Luffy was off ever since they spoke with Nami, like there was a shift in his personality, and something much more fierce was appearing. The last time he acted like this was when he fought the Bandit King, and Addy knew the answer.

"No, I killed them. They won't be hurting me or anyone else again."

Luffy clicked his tongue in acknowledgement before smiling at her with that beaming smile of his though he was still holding something back. He probably wouldn't be back to his regular self until everything was sorted with Nami. Despite that Addy smiled back at him and that empty feeling in her chest filled up again. Her captain was something. She would never find another like him, even if she spent all eternity searching. Nami would soon realize this, at least Addy hoped she would. Outside of being nakama Addy had grown fond of the navigator. Addy hoped Nami would soon have her moment when she realized what kind of person Luffy was. They all had their moments where they realized this, or at least Addy assumed so. One would almost have too as Addy could not see anyone joining Luffy without him causing some change in their lives of some sort. Especially Zoro, unless he was being blackmailed by Luffy and somehow Addy doubted that is what happened. Even if the change was only helping someone regain what was taken from them. Addy placed her hand over her locket. Nami's moment would soon come as well.

It didn't take long before they were walking past where the ship had crashed. Just as Addy suspected there were fishmen investigating. Addy spotted four of them, one of them being Hachi who Addy prayed would not remember her. He was an idiot but the question was how much of an idiot. Out of the three others one was a deflated pufferfish, a smelt-whiting who had a really long face, and a muscular ray. Unlike the other fishmen she ran across or more accurately beat up, these ones looked like they could actually put up a fight. Quickly taking off her tank top and folding it neatly into her bag she was left with her gray sports bra and light blue shorts. She also got out a couple of hair ties and quickly tied it into a ponytail. Just in case they did spot her, Hachi might think she was a different person from a distance. Fishmen were not known for their long distance vision above water.

"Captain," she said. "I am going to go hide in the woods. At least until we walk past the fishmen."

"Okay," Luffy said and she made her getaway into the trees hoping the fishmen didn't spot her. She climbed up the first one she could and watched what was going on. Trees were never really her thing but she managed to get up without too much of a struggle. Which meant that she only fell off once instead of multiple times. Luckily as soon as she was up and hidden the four fishmen quickly noticed Luffy and were now standing in his path. Addy was able to keep up by hopping from tree to tree, careful to not disturb the leaves as much as possible which was much more difficult than she thought it would be. Fortunately there was a light breeze that helped protect her cover. Otherwise even fishmen would suspect something if the trees started moving by themselves.

Luffy wasn't even phased as he walked up to the fishmen. Most humans were when they first met one but Luffy…. He was just himself. He just strolled on past them as if they weren't even there. It wasn't until Hachi called out to him that he even registered that they were there.

"Huh? Were you calling me?" Luffy asked.

"Y-You… who are you?" Hachi asked. A very good question. Addy was still trying to figure out that. "What are you doing on this island?"

"What does it matter to you?"

"W-Well, you've got a point there… Just like you said."

"I'm Luffy. I'm taking a walk."

"Taking a walk?"

Luffy turned right back around and continued walking.

"Have a pleasant one!" Hachi called out waving his various arms.

"Smartass, where are you headed?" The smelt-whiting asked.

"How should I know?" Luffy responded. It was the truth. Technically Luffy had no idea where the path he was taking headed. Addy just kept following through the trees until eventually Luffy was far enough away that they couldn't see him. For some reason the fishmen elected not to follow him. Perhaps there was something else going on. She jumped back out at that point and rejoined him.

"You weren't phased at all, were you?" she asked him.

"No. Should I be?" he responded. "They are just fishmen."

"Right but most humans when they see one for the first time usually recoil or are at least are taken aback. Even Zoro looked surprised when they first ambushed us."

Luffy laughed and patted her on the shoulder. Addy arched an eyebrow before shaking her head fondly. Luffy was an odd one, that was for sure. Though if her captain was this loony what did it mean about the rest of them? Not that she regretted her choice of joining she just worried about her sanity down the line. After all what would Riley think of…

Riley.

Addy chugged down what was left in her flask feeling the cloudiness overcome her making her feel numb. Good it was all good… what was she thinking about? She swore she saw Luffy give her a concerned look but with everything going on with Nami that is to be expected. Right Nami was in trouble and wanted them to leave. That made Luffy unhappy. Unhappy Luffy is a bad thing.

"Don't worry Captain," she slurred slightly. "We will get Nami back. She will come too."

"I know," he said. He sounded so sure Addy could not help but believe him. It was almost an automatic response. They were going to get Nami back and she will create her world map. Luffy will be Pirate King, Zoro the Greatest Swordsman, Ussop a Brave Warrior of the Sea, Merry traveling with them forever, Sanji would… whatever he was looking for and she…. She would make it to the end and see Luffy become king. She would sail under the pirate king just like they promised they would do. And perhaps maybe she would get to hear the Song of the Sea before the end.

She noticed Luffy stop right in the middle of the path and just look at her. She stopped as well wondering what was going on. Luffy lifted his hand to her face and brushed something off underneath her eyes.

"You're crying," he said. Addy took a step back and rubbed her eyes. Ocean what was wrong with her? Here Nami was going through so much pain and here she was crying about trivial garbage. This is why she needed to carry more booze with her. If she could just forget than she wouldn't be breaking down in the middle of a path about absolute nonsense.

"It's not nonsense," Luffy stated angrily. His brows were furrowed and he had a finger pointed at her chest. "It's about Riley."

"What how do you…"

"She was your soul. Of course you're allowed to be sad." Addy felt like her eyeballs were about to jump out of her head. How much did she drink? Was she hallucinating? How could he possible know? Or perhaps he understood it differently, in human terms rather than…

"You told me," Luffy said before taking her hand and pulling her along. She felt like she was stumbling after him. When did she do that? It was probably one of the times she got blackout drunk, which to be fair happened almost every other day with her. Addy remembered talking with Luffy late one night after dinner during his watch while the others were asleep about Riley not long after leaving Tobio and his grandfather. Was it then? Maybe she should think about cutting back if her newer memories had these many holes in them. Oh who was she kidding? There was no chance of that ever happening. At least not in her current state.

"What's never happening?" Luffy asked.

Addy sighed. She really needed to learn to break that habit. "Me, not drinking," she said.

"Do you want to stop?"

"It's not that I want to it's that I can't. It makes my brain all fuzzy and fuzzy is good. Fuzzy means I forget and I don't have to remember all the bad stuff."

"But what about the good stuff? Don't you forget about that too?"

"I guess. But it's worth it for not remembering the bad stuff."

Luffy hummed but did not say anything. Addy got the feeling that he disagreed with her but the point was moot. Unless he directly ordered her to stop she wasn't going to and even if he did Addy would consider disobeying. She would follow him to the ends of the earth but to ask that of her. That was something else entirely. He still held a tight grip on her hand as if he was afraid she would fall over if he let go. Which to be fair she probably would have.

As she was being dragged along this path her mind drifted back to Nami. Addy hoped that she was okay. Nami seemed pretty upset when Luffy fell asleep though it also gave away how much she cared. Ocean they have barely known each other but Addy already feels like they have spent a life time together. She wondered if the others felt the same way. Luffy, Zoro, Usopp, Merry and now Sanji. Whether they felt the thread that seemed to connect all of them together. Not that it mattered. It wouldn't last forever, but for the time that it does, Addy thought that she could possibly be happy. Perhaps, maybe. If she kept herself together long enough. And even then….

Addy closed her eyes for a second calming her mind. It would do her no good to become over emotional though with all the alcohol running through her veins that would be easier said than done. She felt Luffy's grip on her tighten. It felt like she was legitimately squeezing rubber. It was smooth without any nicks or scratches, and warm. So very warm. But that was Luffy for you, he just radiated warmth. Whether it was the blazing sun or just a cuddly blanket he exhibited true warmth. There was no way she was going to let him or any one of her nakama go.

"Captain," she said catching Luffy's attention.

"Yep?" he responded.

"We are heading towards the village right now. However if we turn around right now we can make it to Arlong's rather quickly."

"Who?"

"The fishmen that is causing Nami such grief. If we go defeat him now then Nami will be able to come with us."

"No."

Addy stopped, stunned or at least attempted to as Luffy kept on walking causing her to almost trip over herself.

"I'm sorry Captain. What? It wouldn't be difficult. He would probably be a tough opponent but nothing you can't handle."

"No."

"Why?"

"Because she doesn't want our help."

Again Addy was left speechless. What he said was absolutely true and it was clear that Nami needed their help but would it mean as much? Would Addy have joined the Straw Hats if Luffy just went and got her locket back? She would be grateful yes but would it have the same impact? It then dawned on her. No it wouldn't because in the back of her mind she would always wonder whether or not she could have taken care of it herself. Luffy did more than recover her locket, he saved her when she was at her lowest. When there was nothing more she could do, Luffy took up her burden and succeeded when nothing else could.

Addy let out a chuckle. "I understand Captain."

"I knew you would."

"Though I am curious. What happens if she doesn't ask for our help?"

"She will."

Addy chuckled. Luffy sounded so sure of himself. Of course he would not be Luffy if he wasn't. However even from what little time she had spent being a Straw Hat, Luffy more often than not tended to be correct about these sorts of things. When it came to people Luffy was some sort of idiot savant. Addy wondered what his family was like. Probably chaotic, insanely powerful. They would have to be to produce a kid like Luffy and Addy was certainly grateful. Luffy was a man who could perform miracles, dream and do the impossible. Not for the first time, Addy thought, traveling with him was going to be an adventure. One of a lifetime and in the end that is all Addy could ask for. A lifetime of adventure with her family, what more was there? Why? Why? Why could Nami not see that? They were never going to leave. Not as long as one of them was still here. As long as one of them was in pain they would not rest until that pain was gone and a smile could be brought to their faces.

Family. It's messy, chaotic, and they don't always get alone but at the end of the day they are there for each other. No matter the consequences, they will help Nami and any other nakama who might find themselves in trouble. Because that was family does and that exactly is what the Straw Hat pirates are going to do.

"Let's bring her home," Addy said determined. Her brain felt like mush and she was pretty sure Usopp could react faster than her but she was going to give it her all. Nami did the same for her when they went to get her locket back because it was important to her and from what little Addy knew, this village was Nami's treasure. As a nakama's treasure Addy was going to defend it. Because after all the bickering, squabbles, fighting, abandoning, that is what family does.

Addy looked at Luffy who was walking steadily forward with his straw hat resting on his head. He would fix everything. She had full faith in that.

* * *

hellspam- Oh there will be lots of completely directionless Zoro. That I can guarantee. We still have a couple of chapters till the really big fights but I think they are going to be good.

RedHairedOctavia- I am glad to hear it :).


	35. Debts Paid in Full Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _For off I want to thank everyone for the compliments to the last chapter. That one wins for most rewrites so far but I am glad it turned out well. As for this one well, let's see how it turns out. This is based on episode 36. As always please review and leave suggestions. Reviews make me happy._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

Firmly set in the path they wanted to take it wasn't much longer until they reached the village. Luffy had let go of her hand and placed his hands on his hips while Addy was swinging her arms back and forth. The sun was shining behind them warming their backs as they looked over Cocoyashi village.

The street was filled with people of all sorts. The town was lively despite basically living under the oppression of a dictator, though one of the people stuck out to Addy. Next to a man, wearing a brown uniform and a pinwheel on his hat, who looked like he had been slashed with a sword several times was a Marine. He looked like a rat with the whiskers and the ears which were attached to his Marine cap. Unlike other Marines he had a greyish-blue button up coat that went down to his feet, a black belt and what looked like some of the ugliest blue shoulder pads that she had seen. The guy looked like he was dressed by his mother who was color blind. It only then dawned on her that Hachi mentioned something about Marines. Perhaps this was what he was talking about. Were they working for Arlong then? As if they could sink any lower.

'Showing your true colors then,' Addy thought as they walked closer to each other. If only other Marines would be so courteous as to do the same. Would make her life somewhat easier. She placed one hand on her whip, running her thumb over the handle, ready to attack at any moment. She counted several Marines behind him. Looks like rat-face was the captain. The Marines must be desperate if they made this guy a captain.

She glanced over at Luffy who had a strange look on his face. His mouth was hanging wide open and sweat was dripping down. Did he notice something that she missed? Addy was completely plastered so it was possible. As the Marines got closer she prepared to jump out to attack when Luffy placed a hand on her shoulder. The message was clear. Do not attack. She grumbled but did what Luffy asked. Straining her ears she managed to catch a little of what pinwheel guy was saying to rat face.

"What business do the Marines have with Nami?" he asked rat face. All the rat face man did was squeak as he walked straight past Luffy and Addy. She glared at them as they walked past.

"You should remain quiet and escort us," rat face man said. Addy tightened her grip on the whip. She was calling dibs on that guy. Luffy and Zoro can beat up as many fishmen as they want but that Marine was hers. She turned her head to see where they were headed. Out of the village apparently to where though Addy was uncertain.

"Why does he have a pinwheel on his head?" Luffy asked. "That's TOO cool!"

Addy turned to face him. "What? Is that what's got you all worked up?" She probably shouldn't be surprised. Luffy was fascinated by the oddest things. "Anyway, Captain may I see what these Marines are up to?"

"If you want," he said before walking deeper into the village. Addy waited a moment before turning around and following the Marines. There stomping was loud enough that it would easily cover her lighter footsteps. Question was how to separate one from the pack. They were tightly in formation. Smart move. As much as she wanted to jump in and start beating the crap out of them she figured Zoro would probably not be too happy with her if she got injured again. Not to mention Luffy and she really didn't want to deal with the backlash of those two.

As they walked further out of the village the scent of oranges began to fill the air, which sent Addy reeling. Normally she didn't mind the scent of citrus, actually liked it a lot considering she couldn't eat any of it. However, when she was drunk off her ass it wasn't a good combination.

Quickly turning off the path she vomited into some bushes. The taste of bile filled her mouth. Her whole body was trembling, wanting to give out on her. She felt absolutely woozy and was rocking back and forth on her heels. She felt her vision become blurry and rubbing her eyes only made it worse. Everything was spinning around her. Oh this was bad. Really, really, really bad.

Using her primal instincts she stumbled around in the woods trying to sense out any body of water, a puddle would do at this point, running into several trees along the way. Or perhaps one tree over and over again, she was unsure. Somehow through sheer force of instinct she managed to directly fall straight into a pond.

The instant her body hit the water she felt her mind clear. The fogginess was gone and her reflexes were back. Sitting at the bottom of what was a rather shallow pond she composed herself for a moment. It would do her no good to run straight into a fight with her emotions out of whack. That was asking for trouble. Not to mention go against her training. After taking in several gulps of water and eating a couple of the frogs and snails that called this pond their home she felt that she was well enough to fight. Or at least not fall flat on her face. She jumped out of the pond and landed softly back on the ground.

Only to come face to face with two Marines who were staring at her, eyes wide and mouths hung open. Perfect. In a flash Addy drew her whip and slammed the hilt into the forehead of one of the Marines dropping him to the ground instantly. The other one tried to bring his gun up to shoot her but Addy lashed at his hands causing him to drop it. Before he could grab it again, she hooked her whip around it and sent it flying into some bushes.

The two of them stared at each for a moment before the marine turned around and attempted to run for it. Addy sighed. Would these idiots ever learn? Lashing out her whip she wrapped it around the guy's neck making sure that it wasn't too tight. As soon as he reached the maximum distance he could go she yanked back on the whip causing him to fall on the ground as well with a thump. Keeping a hold of the handle she walked closer to the Marine who was now out cold. She started pulling back on the whip, bundling it in her hands, making sure that it was still around his neck, creating a tighter leash.

Standing over him, he looked like the typical Marine grunt. Poor soul. Addy almost felt bad for him. Perhaps this was his first assignment. He was looking forward to stopping what he considered 'bad guys.' Or maybe he had been doing this for years and this was just one of many assignments that hurt more people then helped. Whatever the case it looks like it wasn't meant to be. If only he didn't join an organization that runs on corruption and the pain of others than he wouldn't have to be in this position.

Kneeling down Addy checked his pulse, placing his fingers against her neck, making sure that he wasn't dead. It would be pretty hard to interrogate him if he was. Luckily his pulse was still going strong and she gave him a large slap across the face. His eyes immediately opened and he tried to sit up only for Addy to push him back down again.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," she said. "One wrong move and I will kill you."

"You're a monster," the marine spit at her though she nimbly dodged it.

"Wow I have never heard that one before. Truly original. Now are you going to tell me what I want to know?"

"I will never succumb to torture."

Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Typical Marine nonsense.

"Okay look here is the deal. I don't have time to give you the full work up so I will just speed this alone. If you tell me what I want to know then I will let you and your friend go to be killed by someone else on another day. Assuming of course your friend is still alive." She heard the Marine gulp and his eyes drifted over towards his friend. Things were going her way now. "Or you cannot tell me and I just kill you and move on to the next Marine who will tell me what is going on."

"No please don't. I have a wife and a child on the way."

"That's nice. Still going to kill you. Maybe your wife will remarry someone with a less risky job. Merchants are usually a safe bet. They have great job security. Also nice benefits from what I am told."

The Marine seem to struggle, looking back and forth between his comrade and her. Addy arched an eyebrow. As fun as this was, she wasn't going to wait around forever. Eventually her hostage collapsed in on himself and he looked up at her defeated, tears streaming down his face.

"What do you want to know?" he asked.

"Why are you here?" she asked him slacking the whip slightly. Might as well give him some reward for talking.

"We are here to recover some stolen pirate treasure."

"Stolen treasure? From who?"

"Nami. She is a girl who lives outside the village, in the house by the orange grove." Addy tightened her grip on the whip and he made a chocking sound. She lessened the tension around his neck slightly allowing the man to continue. "Apparently she is a pirate thief and has a collection of gold buried somewhere in the grove."

"Who told you this?" At that the guy clammed up. Addy tighten her grip and pulled on the whip lifting him up off the ground so that they were directly at eye level. "Tell me now before I decide to rip your throat out."

"Arlong. Arlong told us. He is the fishman that lives on this island. We have been taking bribes from him for years. When he told us about the treasure Captain Nezumi jumped on it."

Addy uncoiled her whip and got up off the ground, leaving the Marine coughing and sputtering on the ground. She should kill him but unlike Marines she actually kept her word. Glancing over to the two Marines she saw lying on the forest floor she turned back and started heading for the path. Or at least in the direction she thought the path was. She sort of lost track during her drunken rampage through the woods. That was what probably caused the Marines to find her. Now if only she could remember what caused her to wander into the woods in the first place.

She felt her brain become fuzzy again. Fresh water would only do so much. What she really needed was a nice long swim in Ocean or a waterfall though she couldn't exactly do either right now. She took a deep breath and the scent of oranges hit her like a wave. Oranges…. That's right. And the Marine did say that Nami lived in an orange grove. Taking another deep breath she started following the scent of oranges. She would kill for Luffy at this moment. He would find the place in about two seconds.

Instead Addy had to rely on her poor sense of smell above water in order to find where Nami was. Or where she assumed Nami was. The Marine could have been lying. Addy let out a growl. This was bad, really really bad. If something happened to Nami while she was wandering in the woods, Addy wasn't sure she could forgive herself. Not a second time, not after….

She took another deep breath. Getting into a panic attack would not help anyone at this moment. Least of all Nami.

Addy paused and leaned against a tree, curling herself up in a ball. She started taking deep breaths until she was light headed. Normally when this happened she just drank but now that she was running empty she was going to have to fight through it before it overwhelmed her. That sense of emptiness. Overbearing, overwhelming, overpowering emptiness.

She opened up her locket and stared at the picture of the two of them. Back when things were good and the emptiness wasn't trying to consume her. Addy had to remember that she was still here for a reason. She couldn't join Riley, not yet. Not unless she fulfilled or more likely tried to fulfill the promise that they made. The image of Nami screaming at the Straw Hats flashed in her mind and Addy closed the locket. The pain was evident on her face. Nami needed her right now. Her nakama needed her. Nothing else mattered. If Addy kept that in mind then she would be okay. At least for now.

Sniffing at the air she noticed that the scent of oranges was even stronger. By some miracle she was getting closer. Addy took off full blaze through the forest, weaving through the trees. She had wasted enough time already though she still had to be cautious. Both fishmen and Marines were about and the last thing that she wanted was another delay.

Soon enough the forest ended and Addy found herself standing in front of an orange grove. The scent was overpowering. Addy could taste it on the tip of her tongue. An almost bitter sweetness. Reminded Addy of elephant tuna. She thought she could also hear yelling and the sounds of digging. This was bad. The Marines were already here and were searching for the treasure. Why would Nami bury treasure here of all places instead of some desolate island? They had certainly run into several of those already.

"Hey who are you?!" a voice yelled at her. Addy turned and saw three Marines staring at her, two with shovels and one with a gun pointed directly at her. Curse her luck. This was going to be a hassle. Ah well what could she do.

Uncurling her whip she cracked it, sending the Marines back a few steps. Rolling her shoulders she let out a grin. The Marines started trembling and Addy couldn't help but bark out a laugh. Marines usually offered a good fight though these ones... it was going to be less of a fight and more of a workout. Addy could definitely use it. 'After all' she thought stepping closer to the marines. She still had a fishman to fight as well as a Marine captain. There adventure was just getting started and after all they couldn't sail anywhere without there navigator.

* * *

hellspam-Are you psychic because that is what I was planning on doing. Giving Addy a seastone whip. Then I realized that it would make the Doflamingo fight way easier as all she had to do was get her whip around him and then let Luffy and Law beat him up. The whip will definitely involve seastone but I am not sure how yet. And I am happy you liked the conversation

blackcat711- The relationship between her and Luffy might actually be one of the most important relationships in this series if not the most important. They are going to be having a lot more conversations like that. Heart to hearts don't happen a lot for him, but that also makes them really difficult to write. Glad it turned out well.

RedHairedOctavia- I definitely have some better chapters and some worse ones though I like to think they can be all called good. I am so happy that I was able to capture Luffy that well. Merry leaving is going to be sad but I already have some ideas brewing. No I think what is going to be most difficult to write is going to be the second half of Skypeia. Not looking forward to that. As for Arlong... well wait and see :)


	36. Debts Paid in Full Part 7

_Author's Note_

 _So at this point we are at the halfway mark of the arc. I forgot how much actually happens in this arc compared to some others I can talk about. This one is based on episode 37. As always please review and make suggestions, comments, or ask questions. I do enjoy the feedback._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

Apparently Addy's wasn't the only battle that was going on. Seemed like Nami was fighting as well, judging from the distant screams. Addy wondered if they could hear her fight considering how much noise her opponents were making.

The one with the gun was already on the ground unconscious. Addy dealt with him first, all it took was a few lashes. The other Marines were the ones causing problems, charging at her multiple times. She was getting fed up. It was more annoying than difficult. As one of them launched their attack, shovel in the air, she swerved out of the way and wrapped her whip around his legs causing him to trip. At that exact moment the other one charged, so that Addy had to release her whip around the one in order to dodge though not before slamming the handle into the guy's nose. This allowed the one to get up again and the whole process started over. Her bad shoulder and ankle weren't helping either. Right now they felt like they were on fire. How many times would it take before these guys stayed down?

Suddenly she heard someone yelling from inside the orange grove. "THE GIRL"S MONEY IS GOING TO SAVE COCOYASHI VILLAGE!" At that moment it all came together for Addy. Why Nami was acting the way she was.

Growling she turned to face her two opponents who were looking a little worse for the wear. They would soon collapse from exhaustion but Addy didn't exactly have time for that.

"I can't believe I am using this move on you guys," Addy said holding her whip out in front of her. "But this seems like the fastest way to do it. Lautan Tagan!" She lashed her whip towards the two marines. Before they could even move the tip of the whip separated into four different strands. The strands wrapped themselves around the Marines arms digging into their skin causing them to scream and drop their shovels. Addy twisted the whip causing it to dig in deeper, eliciting sobs from her enemies. "Kembali!" The whip unfurled itself rapidly shredding through the Marines and reforming itself into a single tail. On top of the exhaustion it caused the Marines to collapse in a pile whimpering.

She wrapped up her whip into a coil but kept it in her hand. Addy was probably going to need it. Taking off into the orange grove it wasn't long until she ran into more Marines who were busy tearing up trees.

"Oh come on! How many of you are there?" She lashed out her whip at the nearest one, straight across the back. He let out a brutal cry and dropped, which also happened to catch the attention of the other two. This time Addy charged past them before they could react so that she was behind them. Before they could turn around she pivoted and slashed them across the back as well. The both fell to the ground whimpering. Were these Marines made out of tissue paper? Usopp could take more damage than this.

Swiftly turning herself around she started running through the orange grove, beating up every Marine she ran across. Unfortunately, there was a lot of them and every moment wasted dealing with them was another second she could not lose.

Another thing was that this place was a maze. There were rows and rows of orange trees. It wasn't helping that the citrus was making her dizzy. Where could the house possibly be?

"You corrupt bastards!" the voice from before called out. It wasn't too far away so Addy figured she must be close.

"How could the Marines stoop so low as to be pirates' lapdogs!?" Nojiko yelled out. Apparently story time was over.

"IT"S HERE!" one of the Marines called out. Addy stopped in her tracks and headed towards that voice, finally getting tired of the orange trees and pushing herself through them. She would apologize to Nami later.

"This is amazing!" Rat guy said. "That little girl sure did gather a lot!" Dammit, they really did find it. Addy hurried up despite the massive headache that had formed.

"But it's all stained with blood and in bad shape," one of the Marines said. Wait did he say blood?

Addy paused for a second and concentrated. She promised herself that she would never, ever, ever, ever, do this… but it was for a nakama and it was only sensing. Closing her eyes she focused on the scent of blood, the taste of it on her tongue, the feel of it between her fingers. She felt her heart beat speed up and more primordial feelings brought to the surface but she squashed them down. "Focus on the blood," she whispered. Once she opened her eyes, she knew exactly where they were.

"DON"T TOUCH IT!" Nami screamed. Addy could see her through the trees along with Rat Face, holding a gun directly towards her. Addy sped up pushing her legs to the brink. At the exact moment he pulled the trigger Addy crashed right into him sending him tumbling on the ground.

She stood between Nami, Nojiko and him. Addy was panting and her body was covered in a layer of sweat.

"Nojiko!" Nami cried out. Addy turned around to see the damage. Nojiko was lying on the ground with Nami kneeling beside her. "NOJIKO!"

Addy quickly made it to Nojiko's other side. Nami looked at her straight in the eye, if she was surprised to see Addy there she didn't show it. Together the two of them rolled Nojiko over to take a look at the wound. In a little bit of good news it went straight through the shoulder though she was bleeding badly.

Grabbing her shirt out of her bag she pressed it against the wound, hoping to control the bleeding. She could always wash it later.

"Nami, she needs a doctor," Addy said placing more pressure on the wound. "Please tell me there is one in the village."

She nodded unable to bring herself to speak.

"Alright now I need you to listen to me. We have to take her to the village as quickly as possible without her losing any more blood."

"Wait a second! Who are you?" the brown shirt man asked.

"A friend," Nami mumbled. The brown shirt man stared at Nami. "She is a friend Genzo."

"Well that is good enough for me," he said. "What do you need me to do?"

"I need you to carry her to the village," Addy replied. "While I keep the pressure on the wound."

"She is going to be okay right?" Nami asked. She looked at Addy with big eyes and her whole body was trembling as if she was stopping herself from crying.

"Nami the quicker we get her to a doctor the better off she will be but from what I can tell she is going to be fine." Nami breathed a sigh of relief. "Now I am going to need you to step back for a moment. Genzo placed your arms under her and lift her up slowly."

Genzo followed the instructions to the letter, picking Nojiko up as gently as possible while Addy kept the pressure on. As quickly as they could they made their way back to the village with Nami trailing behind them.

It wasn't too long until they reached it. The grove was actually a lot closer than Addy realized.

"DOCTOR! DOCTOR!" Genzo called out. A crowd of people soon enveloped them and a man with a white coat and a wispy beard came running towards them.

"What happened, Genzo?" he asked. Addy assumed that he was the doctor.

"Nojiko's been shot," Genzo replied cradling Nojiko in his arms.

"By who?"

As soon as the doctor reached them, Addy backed off and let the doctor take over. Her shirt was absolutely soaked in blood, it was dripping. It covered her hands but she barely noticed. Wringing it out before folding it up and placing it back in her bag she saw Luffy resting by a tree and walked over towards him.

She sat down beside him and watched. Genzo had carefully placed Nojiko on the ground so that they doctor could take a closer look. Nami was cradling her head as if unsure what to do with herself.

"The Marines," Genzo answered.

"The Marines?" the doctor asked as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing.

At that moment Luffy let out a large smile. Addy looked over at him quizzically. What was going through his head? The villagers were also starting too looked more panicked. Apparently they were being told what had happened. It made Addy sick to her stomach. Arlong and the Marines would pay for this.

Nami was probably thinking the exact same thing. She got up and stood over her sister her fists clenched. Luffy decided it was also time to get him and he joined the crowd with Addy following beside him.

"Yo, Nami!" he said. "What's up?" Addy face palmed which had the side effect of now covering her face in blood. Seriously what was Luffy thinking? Couldn't he tell how serious the situation was? "Can I help with something?"

Nami turned to face him, scowling. "You're STILL here?!"

"I thought the answer to that question would be obvious," Addy mumbled. Nami glared at here before grabbing Luffy by his shirt collar. Addy made a move to step in but Nami shook her head. Addy stared at her, the message clear. She could do whatever she wanted as long as she didn't hurt Luffy.

"This is none of your business!" she yelled at him in his face. "Get off this island!" She threw him to the ground and he made a sound of surprise. Addy however was quick enough to catch him and she watched as Nami ran off. Probably to Arlong.

"You okay Captain?" she asked as she helped him up. He stalked back towards the tree before sitting crossed legged at its base. She sat down beside him wiping her hands on the grass to remove some of the blood.

"What's her problem?" he asked looking annoyed. His eyes were narrow and he was making a weird sort of frown.

"Bad guys took her money, when they promised that they wouldn't," Addy summarized. Luffy didn't need to know or even care to know the rest.

"You're covered in blood," he pointed out.

"Yeah I know, it's from Nojiko. I had to keep her from bleeding out."

"Isn't it sticky?"

"Surprisingly no. I actually don't notice it. I wonder where the others are?"

"Eh they'll be fine."

"It's not that I am worried about them. I just want to make sure they aren't fighting without us."

Luffy laughed. Addy smiled, the emptiness filling up with fog again. She felt here body relax and turned her attention towards the village. The people seemed to be pouring out into the street. There was quiet a large number of them.

"This is as far as it goes!" Genzo called out. "Get your weapons! We're gonna fight!"

"YEAH!" the crowd called out running back into the building to find whatever they could. They came out holding pitchforks and shovels and whatever other tool they could get their hands on. Genzo was leading the charge staring at the crowd with a sabre at his hip.

"Eight years ago, we said we'd never throw our lives away! That no matter how bad their abuse against us became. As long as Nami was fine, we were going to continue our fight of endurance! But this is how they answer back!" He pointed directly at Nojiko whose arm was bandage up. She was standing strong for a person who was shot under an hour ago. Addy was pretty sure she would be on the ground waiting to die.

"Now that there's no way for this village to be freed, we have no goal to survive for! Furthermore! We will not forgive them for preying on Nami's kindness! Are there any objections!?"

"No way! Let's go!" one of the villagers cried out.

"We're already prepared to fight!"

"We're not gonna take it anymore!"

"YEAH!" The raised there weapons above their heads in a moment of triumph. Most likely not one of them would be coming back.

"Wait, everybody!" Nami called out. Addy turned her head towards her as did everyone else.

"Nami!" Nojiko called out.

Nami had a large smile plastered on her face, though even from here Addy could tell it was fake.

"Just wait… Just wait a little longer!" she said holding her arms open. "I'm going to try again! I'll get the money again! It'll be easier this time! I have lots of experience! It's okay. You don't have to worry." She sounded like she was trying to convince herself as well as them. From the look of the crowd, it wasn't working. "Compared to that time… Everybody, I'm fine! I'm fine so…"

Genzo took a few steps towards her and wrapped his arm around her.

"That's enough," he said softly. "We know what futility is like. You fought well, for our sake. It must have been more painful for you to join that crew, more painful than it is to cut yourself. You fought well."

"Gen…" Nami mumbled into his shoulder. He let her go and the two stood before each other.

"Now, leave this village," he told her.

"Gen.."

"Do it, Nami," Nojiko added in.

"I can't!" she replied.

"You've got brains, and you've got a dream."

"Nojiko! Everybody! I won't let you!" She stood in front of the crowd, her arms held up as if trying to bloke them. Addy saw her take out a hidden dagger and point it towards Genzo. "Stop it, everyone! I don't want to see anyone get hurt anymore!" He breathing was heavy and she was barely keeping herself together. "You're gonna die."

"We know," Genzo stated. He grabbed the blade of the dagger that Nami was holding out. Her trembling increased.

"It's useless," the doctor said. "We've already decided in our hearts." Tears were falling down Nami's face. There was nothing she could do. Addy felt for her village, she knew that feeling. Hell she lived with that feeling every single day. She was half tempted to get up and join them though she knew Luffy would order her back.

"Out of the way, Nami!" Genzo yelled. He let go of the dagger and stood before Nami before turning around to face the crowd. "Let's go, everybody! Even if we can't win, we'll show them our pride!"

"YEAH!" they screamed out one final time before rushing past Nami. She was left standing their feeling useless. She dropped the dagger and it landed with a clink before falling on her knees. Eight years… eight years she put her life into collecting treasure and it was for nothing. Undone in a matter of moments. Tears were streaming down her face and she clutched at her tattoo tearing into her skin. She took the knife up in her other hand and stabbed herself in the shoulder. Addy winched, her mind flashing to another time, to another girl, who had lost everything.

"ARLONG!" Nami cried out stabbing herself multiple times. The blood was flowing down and mixing with the dirt. Addy started tearing up. She had failed again. She had failed to help someone she deeply cared for. Her nakama. She promised that she would never fail again after she lost her Riley, but Nami was sitting before her broken and all Addy could do was watch in sympathy. "ARLONG! ARLONG! ARLONG!"

No Addy might not be able to help but she knew someone who could. Turning towards Luffy she saw that his expression was blank. He was watching as Nami kept stabbing himself, calling out Arlong. In one swift movement he got up and walked towards Nami. As she brought the knife towards her again, he grabbed her arm and held on to it tightly. She turned her head to face him, her voice quiet. "Luffy…" She dropped the knife and with a clink it fell to the ground. Luffy let go and Nami collapse in on herself.

"What do you want?" she asked. "You don't know anything. You don't know what's been happening for the past eight years on this island."

"Yeah. I don't," he replied softly.

"This is none of your business! I told you to get off this island, didn't I?" She was clawing at the ground.

"Yeah. You told me."

"Go away!" She threw dirt at him in one last effort to make him go. "You! Go away!" She kept on doing it but Luffy remained. "Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away! Go away…" She brought her hand to her face as if to keep herself from crying out. "Luffy…" she turned towards him broken. "Help me."

That was the cue. Addy got up from underneath the tree and walked towards Luffy taking her place on his left. In a move that surprised Addy he took off his straw hat and placed it on Nami's head before turning around and heading down the path. Addy stood right by his side prepared to fight.

He took several steps away from Nami before shouting to the sky. "DAMN RIGHT!" It was only then that Addy noticed the rest of the crew was here as well. She let out a grin. Zoro was sitting under an umbrella, sword clutched in his hand. Usopp was sitting on the path while Sanji was smoking.

"We're going," Luffy ordered.

"Right!" the four of the said simultaneously. Zoro took his position as Luffy's right hand while Sanji stood next to her. Usopp took his stand by Zoro and together the four of them walked down the path. Towards Arlong's and towards victory. Each step was in sync. They were all of one mind, one purpose. Help Nami in whatever way they could.

As they got closer Addy could make out the crowd standing before the door. Johnny and Yosaku were guarding it.

"Move," Luffy ordered once they got close. The crowd was staring at them in awe. Luffy held up his hand and the Straw Hats stopped. He took a few steps towards the door and the crowd backed away allowing Luffy to punch it. It created a massive dent and a loud crack echoed. A second punch and they were through, the door nothing more than rubble.

"What the?" Arlong asked shocked.

"Which one's Arlong?" Luffy asked holding his fist up.

Addy laughed. In the course of all the chaos they had actually forgotten to tell Luffy which one was Arlong. This was going to be fun.

* * *

Moves

Lautan Tagan- Ocean Hand

Kembali- Return

Review Responses

hellspam- Marines will get a lot of punishment in this fic, though arguably it won't always be justified. No one really knows Skypeia. I just rewatched that arc and I cannot tell you half of the things that happened in it. Luckily we got Alabasta first and Alabasta is going to be fun.

RedHairedOctavia- Addy is going to have her sarcasm turned up for Skypeia. I think that will be the only way I can make it through. Hopefully this chapter will be as awesome as the last one considering we are about to face Arlong :).

psychopathonadiet- Addy water powers are completely tied into what she is, so yes that will be explained by the time they reach Alabasta. I am going to drag it out but not for too long. Though this is One Piece so definitions of long may vary.

Sam726- I have thought about it but the tricky thing with seastone is that it makes Devil Fruit users pretty much useless. But your idea may be something I can work with. Especially if I make it so that the seastone has to be reapplied to the whip. Now that is something to think about.


	37. Debts Paid in Full Part 8

_Author's Note:_

 _So now the action really kicks into high gear. I think this might be the longest chapter so far in the arc. It is based on episode 38. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy saw all the fishmen stare at Luffy as he walked through the now broken door.

"Arlong," Arlong stated still sitting in his chair. "My name happens to be Arlong…"

"I'm Luffy," Luffy stated walking closer towards Arlong.

"Luffy? So what are you?"

"A pirate!"

At that the expressions on the fishmen changed to surprise. They were not expecting that, though to be fair Addy wasn't really expecting it either when she first met Luffy.

"That's him!" Hachi yelled pointing towards Luffy. Well that didn't last long. "He's here! The guy who likes taking walks!"

"Hold it, you," one of the fishmen said to Luffy.

"Where do you think you're goin'?!" another asked. They were making no move to stop him, curious as to what he was about to do. "You need to run things by us first, kiddo." Luffy just continued walking and did not pay them any attention.

Two fishmen stepped in front of Luffy blocking his way to Arlong. One of them clapped his hands on Luffy shoulders. This wasn't going to end well for them.

"Yeah! If you don't stop," one of the started to say before Luffy stretched out his arms grab the back of their heads and knocked them together.

"Move!" Luffy said forcefully. The two fishmen collapsed in a heap with a crash. All the fishmen stood around shocked. Addy rolled her eyes. Of course they would think that no one would be able to beat them. Least of all Luffy.

"What does a pirate want with me?" Arlong asked as Luffy got closer.

Once Luffy reached Arlong Luffy grabbed his wrist pulling his arm back. Addy could hear him growling. It only took a second for Luffy to punch Arlong straight in the jaw sending him rolling on the ground for several feet, eventually crashing into the wall.

"Well that didn't take long," Addy said as the fishmen stood stunned that there leader could be taken out so easily.

Unfortunately as the dust cleared Addy could see that Arlong was still fully conscious. There wasn't even a scratch on him. "Well that's good," she said. "It would be a real shame if our opponents couldn't even put up a decent fight."

"Who the hell are you?" Arlong asked.

Luffy did not bother to give an answer, instead glaring at Arlong with a look that seem to penetrate all. Addy thought she could almost see the anger roll off of him in waves.

"Don't make our navigator cry!" he growled. Luffy was even angrier than when he fought the Bandit King.

"Why, you…" some of the fishmen said jumping out of the water. "How dare you insult Arlong?!" They charged at Luffy swords drawn.

Addy watched out of the corner of her eye as Sanji jumped between Luffy and the fishmen. He sent them flying with a series of kicks, straight back into the water with a splash. "Butt out small fry," he stated before placing his leg back down and walking towards Luffy's side. "Yeesh. You just had to run on ahead by yourself."

"It's not like I'd lose on my own," Luffy replied.

"Idiot! When did I say I was worried about you?! I just don't want you hogging all the prey!"

"Oh!"

"I don't mind if you hog them all, though!" Usopp said, his voice quavering as he walked towards Luffy and Sanji.

"Of course you wouldn't" Addy said walking closer towards her captain. "The rest of us on the other hand."

"You sure got some guts," Zoro said to Usopp giving him a sideways look.

"That's them! They're the unknown people," Hachi yelled out pointing towards her and Zoro.

"It's Roronoa Zoro," the ray said.

"Your reputation seems to have gotten around," Addy said looking at Zoro.

"What can I say? I have the skill to support it."

"Yeah? Yeah, I thought so! They tricked me!" Hachi said. "Look, sine, and hinker… No! Hook, line and sinker… right?"

"Not really," Addy replied. "I mean you didn't even ask us our names. Tricking you sort of implies that we had to try."

"Look! It's Long-nose!" another fishmen pointed out. Oh right… Nami faked killed him. From their perspective he should be dead.

"D-Didn't Nami kill him?!" Hachi asked looking like he was seeing a ghost.

"The bastard's alive," the smelt-whiting said. "Which means…"

"I knew it," the ray stated. "The girl was a traitor, just as I suspected!" Addy rolled her eyes and placed her hand on her whip. Of course she was a traitor you simple minded morons. Keeping her as a slave doesn't exactly breed loyalty.

"Who are you calling simple minded?" the puffer fish yelled.

"Oh did I say that out loud," Addy asked. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to compliment you so highly." The puffer fish growled.

At that moment Arlong started laughing, as if he was finding the entire incident amusing. "A pirate huh?" he said. "I see… So that's what you guys' deal is. You were after Nami from the very start. But…" He let out a deep throaty laugh. "What can you five inferior creatures possibly do?!"

"Fool! You're not worth Arlong's time," Hachi said. "He'll be more than enough!" Hachi turned to face Ocean, sounding his mouth out like a trumpet. Whatever he was calling probably wasn't good news. Suddenly everything started rumbling, creating waves in Ocean. What did he summon a sea king or something? That would be a bit of a headache.

"What the… What the… What's going on?!" Usopp yelled out.

"Relax okay," Addy said. "Most likely they summoned a giant sea monster."

"What! Addy you would be able to take care of it right?"

Addy gave him a scathing look. "What did I do to cause you to doubt my abilities? Compared to me it would be nothing more than a nuisance." She drew out her whip fully and took a few steps towards the water ready to jump in.

"The whole lot of you will be food for him!" Hachi laughed. "Come out, Momoo!"

A whirlpool formed in front of them and in the center came a giant blast of water.

"A-A monster!" Usopp cried out. "It's the Grand Line monster that destroyed the town of Gosa!"

"This thing destroyed a town?" Addy asked surprised. As the water fell away she could finally make out what this 'monster' was. She almost burst out laughing. A sea cow? Seriously? These things were massive cowards and probably one of the nicest creatures in the seas. And this one looked like it had been in a fight judging from the massive bump on his head and the fact that it was crying.

"It's here!" Usopp yelled in panic. She could hear the crowd panicking as well. If they did anything reckless.

"Oh, it's him?" Luffy asked.

"He's a friend of the fishmen?" Sanji wondered.

"Well it sounds like you guys had an adventure on your way over here," Addy said. The poor sea cow was crying even harder now and had turned away from them.

"Wait! Momoo! Where are you going?!" Hachi called out. "Hey! Stop! Get back here! Momoo!"

"Momoo. What are you doing?" Arlong asked. Momoo stopped moving away and Addy took her stance. If it was going to attack than she had the best chance of fighting it.

"Addy," Luffy said. She turned towards him. He had a steely look in his eye and he slightly shook his head. She got the idea and backed off going back to standing behind Zoro. Luffy had a plan… hopefully.

"Though, if you wanna run away, I won't stop you," Arlong stated. "Understand, Momoo?" Momoo then turned around, its jaws wide open, growling.

"It's coming! It's coming!" Usopp yelled waving his hands in front of him.

"Captain?" Addy asked, unsure. If he had a plan he needed to act now.

"Alright!" the fishmen called out. "Follow after Momoo!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Usopp kept calling out. Addy held out her whip in front of her while Zoro drew his sword.

"I'll do it! This is a waste of time!" Luffy said bringing his fists together. It was then that Addy got it. Luffy didn't want to give away the fact that she could breathe underwater. It would most likely be an advantage in the upcoming fight. Besides Luffy could take it out faster than she could.

Luffy stamped into the ground as hard as he could, smashing straight through the rock so that his foot was firmly in place. He did the exact same with the other foot. He was not moving anytime soon.

"What's he planning now?!" Sanji asked.

"I wish I could tell you," Addy answered staring at Luffy with confusion.

"I don't get a very good feeling about this…" Zoro replied. Well if Zoro didn't know what Luffy was thinking than this could be a massive problem.

Luffy started twisting himself into a coil, spinning rapidly around in place. The fishmen were getting closer as well as Momoo. Whatever he was planning on doing he had to do it now.

Eventually Luffy stopped spinning and stared at the sea cow, growling. Stretching out he grabbed the horns of the sea cow and pulled himself back. She could hear the sound of rubber stretching. The sea cow started crying again and making soft whimpering noises.

"His arms stretched!" Hachi said looking stunned. Oh please for the love of everything, let them know what Devil Fruits are. They are from the Grand Line for Ocean's sake.

"He has a Devil Fruit power?!" Arlong asked equally surprised.

"No shit!" Addy yelled. "I thought you would know this but in case you most humans can't actually twist themselves into a spring. I can't wait to get to the Grand Line where people will stop being dumb about this sort of thing. "

"What?!" the puffer fish asked.

"Who cares?" another fishman answered. "Go!"

Luffy back was almost touching the ground. Addy still had no clue what he was trying to do.

"Whoa! Run!" Zoro called out. Well at least one of them figured it out.

"What? What's he doing?!" Sanji asked. It then clicked in Addy's brain.

"Oh dear Ocean," she said staring at Luffy wide eyed.

"I dunno, but it doesn't look good!" Zoro responded.

"He is mimicking a pinwheel," Addy answered as the three of them ran off as far as they could away from Luffy.

"What?!" Zoro asked.

"He saw this guy with a pinwheel on his head. He thought it was the coolest thing."

"Gomu-Gomu…" Luffy yelled. He picked up the sea cow and started spinning it around in a circle. "Pinwheel!" He was screaming as he span around taking out fishmen left and right. He seemed to be having the time of his life. The fishmen stood no chance against him. Eventually he let go of Momoo and sent him flying through the air. Addy could hear him crying and a distance splash creating a large blast of water.

"I didn't come here to take on these guys!" Luffy said.

"No, I was pretty sure that was our job," Addy mumbled walking towards Luffy with the others. The amount of damage he caused was insane. There was rubble everywhere.

"The one I wanna beat up… is you!" He pointed towards Arlong.

"That's perfect, then," Arlong replied. "I was just thinking of killing you now."

"That was dangerous, you!" Sanji shouted kicking Luffy in the head.

"Are you trying to kill us, too?!" Usopp asked, which to be fair was a very good question.

"Huh?" Luffy answered. He was moving side to side. Addy could hear the rubber squeaking. "Huh?" He started moving side to side faster. "Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

"What are you doing?" Usopp yelled at him.

"Huh?"

"How dare you hurt our brothers?!" Hachi called out.

"Oh you're still up?" Addy asked. "That's great." Usopp squeaked and ran behind a pillar.

"It would seem we need to fight, too," the ray said.

"Looks like we need to teach them the difference between our species," the smelt-whiting added in.

"Shouldn't be too difficult," the pufferfish said. "Particularly the girl."

"The main forces finally show up, huh?" Zoro said grinning.

"I call dibs on the pufferfish," Addy said. "You can divide the others amongst yourselves."

Arlong was relaxing in the wall as if enjoying the show.

"Arlong. Please stay there quietly," the ray asked.

"If you go on a mad rampage, you'll tear all of Arlong Park into pieces," the smelt-whiting stated.

Hachi groaned and raised his fists to the sky. "We'll take care of these guys!"

The pufferfish bared his teeth. "After all, they are only humans."

"Yeah. Do as you wish," Arlong replied.

"Hey. Hey, there," Luffy said. "There's something I…" Hachi started sucking in air and the pufferfish did the same turning himself into a round balloon. This would have been comically if not for the giant spikes now sticking out all over his body. Addy still wasn't sure what Hachi was doing.

"That octopus is up to something," Zoro said.

"Octopus is best with a little salt and sliced up," Sanji added in. "Add some olive oil and paprika and it's a perfect snack while drinking."

"I couldn't agree with you more," Addy stated snapping her whip.

"Hey, I'm kind of in trouble. Hear me out," Luffy said.

"What Captain?" Addy asked.

He wasn't given a chance to answer as Hachi yelled. "Take this! Zero vision! Hachi Ink Jet!" Suddenly Hachi brought his head down and black ink started being sprayed from his mouth. Right he was an octopus. Addy easily dodge out of the way along with Zoro and Sanji. Luffy however seem to have taken it full blast if the gurgling sounds he was making were any indication.

"You idiot! Why didn't you dodge?!" Zoro yelled at him.

Luffy was screaming. "AHHH. I can't see!"

"Now to finish you off!" Hachi called out. He picked up an enormous piece of rubble.

"Hey, Luffy! Run!" Usopp cried out from his hiding spot.

"Yeah, that's the problem," Luffy said as Hachi was walking towards him. "I can't seem to move!"

"What?!" Addy yelled.

"Huh?!" Sanji responded.

"M-My feet are stuck!"

"You're the one who stuck them in the ground!" Usopp shrieked.

Zoro face palmed. "Why does he have to be so…"

Sanji groaned while Addy just stared bewildered. Sometimes she had to ask herself if this really was her captain.

"Hachi Ink Jet on the Rocks!" Hachi called out. He smashed the rubble right into Luffy only for it to crack apart straight through the middle. Sanji was standing there his leg straight up above his head. Addy whistled. They may have found their third strongest fighter.

"What a pain," he said.

"Sanji! Great! Great!" Luffy called out.

Sanji brought his leg back down. How flexible was he? "Seems I've wound up following one hell of an idiot of a captain."

"Agreed," Zoro added in.

"We all came to that conclusion," Addy called out.

"Sanji's awesome!" Usopp exclaimed.

"But he's 100 times better than a damn gang that'd hurt a lady," Sanji said.

"Lady?" Ray asked. "To think you'd bust in here just for that one lousy girl. You really know how to make us laugh!"

He really should not have said that in front of Sanji. "Lousy girl?" Sanji repeated. "Just try and insult Nami dear one more time. I'll use a buttered frying pan to turn you into meuniere, Fish Man!"

"You seem somewhat skilled for a human. Any sort of chivalry from a pirate is obviously half-hearted."

"Go ahead and see if my chivalry is half-hearted or not. I was raised by an unbeatable pirate for half my life." He puffed out the cigarette smoke. Sanji seemed to always have one lite. Addy supposed that she might as well get used to the smell.

The ray cracked his knuckles. "It appears you don't know the true level of the fishman species." He raised his arm in front of him. So he knows fishman karate then. Sanji should be able to handle him.

Addy took a closer look at the pufferfish. He was going to be a pain. Spikes covered most of his body and they seem to be dripping some sort of liquid. Poison perhaps? She didn't exactly want to find out.

Meanwhile Usopp was trying to get Luffy out of predicament, without much success. Luffy was well and truly stuck there.

"They're still really stuck," Luffy stated.

"Still?! They're still stuck?!" Usopp asked.

"Yep they're still stuck. I get the feeling just pulling me won't get them unstuck."

"Are you even trying?! Are you even trying to pull your legs out?!

"What're they playing around in Arlong Park for?" Hachi asked. "I'll kill them!"

This was turning somewhat into a disaster. Hachi picked up another piece of rubble and was attempting to toss it at Luffy and Usopp. Usopp was running as fast as he could with a stretched out Luffy and wasn't making it very far.

"Hey, you! Get unstuck already!" he yelled at Luffy. Addy could hear the rubber stretching but it wasn't moving in the slightest.

"Get back here!" Hatchi yelled.

"Hey, octopus," Zoro interrupted. "They're busy right now." He held his sword up to Hachi throat though it was still sheathed. "I'll take you on. "

"Really now?" The pufferfish said. "You think you can take on the two of us?"

That is when Addy sprang into action. She ran over to the pufferfish, jumped on his face and flipped over his shoulder, slashing at his back for good measure. Addy landed softly on her feet and turned to face him who was now glaring at her in anger.

"Sorry but it looks like you have to deal with me instead," Addy said twirling her whip in her hand.

It was then that Hachi smashed the rubble into the ground causing both her and Zoro as well as the pufferfish to jump out of the way.

"Yeah! And you cut down tons of my brothers!" Hachi said.

"Oi it wasn't just him. I took care of at least a third of them," Addy called out. The pufferfish gave her an evil glare while Zoro smirked at her. "What, give credit where credit is due. It's only polite."

"It doesn't matter what reasons you have for wanting to kill me," Zoro said. "The situation's changed now! You're not trying to destroy us. We're trying to destroy you!" He drew his sword out. Addy could see it glint from where she was standing.

"A-Alright, Zoro, Addy! The octopus and pufferfish are all yours! Nice!" Usopp said wiping the sweat off his brow which caused him to accidentally let go of Luffy. Luffy went flying back to his original position right smack into the smelt-whiting. He immediately started chasing Usopp who ran away screaming as fast as he could. Excellent now there was more room to fight. She trusted Usopp to handle it.

Turning her attention back towards her opponent she waited for him to make the first move. During her flip over him she noticed a bald patch on the back of his neck without any spikes. Only question was how to get at it. He probably wasn't going to fall for the same trick twice.

Addy heard Arlong grunting and saw him get up. "You're all pathetic. Move. I'm sick of watching this," he grumbled.

"Arlong! We asked you not to go on a rampage!" the ray said.

"I won't. I just thought up a fun game."

"Game?" Hachi asked.

"I'm going to beat you up!" Luffy yelled throwing a punch at Arlong. He dodged it and grabbed Luffy's arm before it could return to him.

"Do you really think you can beat us?" Arlong asked.

"So what if we do?" Sanji asked.

"We do, stupid-head! Let go!" Luffy answered.

"Sounds like he has something to say," Zoro added in bringing his sword out.

"Could be entertaining," Addy said.

Arlong placed his hand in the rock nearby where Luffy was stuck. Using only one hand he lifted the large chuck with Luffy still in it.

"Oh no..." Addy said making her way towards Luffy but was blocked by the pufferfish.

"What the… What the…" Luffy cried out.

"People with Devil Fruit powers can't swim!" Arlong yelled out. "Though, even people without powers would sink in this situation! He started laughing.

"He's gonna throw him into the sea?!" Zoro cried out.

"NO!" Addy yelled trying desperately to make it to Luffy but the pufferfish blocked her attempt, launching spikes out of his skin. She weaved through them but the pufferfish made a grab for her.

"You're not going anywhere," He said. She smashed the hilt of her whip into his hand causing him to let her go.

"Oww!" Luffy screamed out. Addy turned towards him. His fist was stuck in Arlong's jaw. That was really bad news. At least until Luffy bit him causing Arlong to let go. It was then Luffy fell into the sea. There was a loud splash.

"Luffy!" Zoro yelled.

"Damn you!" Sanji cursed.

Addy snarled, turning towards the pufferfish. She would not be able to rescue Luffy until he was defeated.

Sanji started running to the sea, "I'm coming to save…"

"Idiot," Zoro stated stepping in front of him. "Don't get worked up! They want us to go in the water! The fishmen'd obviously have the advantage in an underwater fight! Addy?!"

"Yes?!" she answered Zoro still giving the pufferfish a death glare.

"Can you handle him underwater?"

"Beyond a shadow of a doubt. He will be sushi by the time I am done with him. Though I won't be able to break the rock, I can keep Luffy alive."

"Such confidence. Clearly you have never fought a fishman before," the puffer fish laughed.

"Then there's only one way to save Luffy!" Zoro said.

"Take these guys down in an instant, then go into the water?" Sanji added in.

Zoro drew his sword. "Let's do it! There's no time!"

"Yeah!" Sanji replied.

"Just how many seconds will Rubber Man hold out?" Arlong asked.

"Oh, so that's the game?" Hachi asked.

"I see," the ray said.

"Addy take care of that pufferfish," Zoro ordered.

"Will do," Addy said making her way towards the water. The pufferfish did nothing to stop her.

"You can have the fish," Zoro said to Sanji.

"You can cut and trim the octopus," Sanji replied.

Addy watched as the bubbles on the surface of the water disappeared. She had no time left. Addy dived straight into the water landing without a splash.

The water was absolutely clear and Addy could feel the strength following through her body. Here her injuries would not hinder her. Luffy was not too far away from her, she could see him sinking to the bottom. She started swimming towards him however it wasn't long before the pufferfish followed her in. She heard the splash as she entered and turned to face him. Compared to her he was ungraceful in the water. He was completely and utterly screwed. Addy started swinging her whip, which cut through the water even faster than it did air. This fight would not last long. Three seconds at the most.

* * *

hellspam-I love that moment in the arc. I think it is one of the best moment's in One Piece in general. I hope I did it justice.


	38. Debts Paid in Full Part 9

_Author's Note:_

 _So here it is. I get the feeling that people have been looking forward to this chapter. It is based on episode 39. As always please review and let me know what you think or what you would like to see._

 _Update: I realized I forgot the move names and for this chapter it's kinda important._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"You just made the biggest mistake of your life," the pufferfish said grinning. The guy looked like a balloon in the water, the bright yellow color of his skin sticking out amidst all the blue.

Addy chuckled, "No, you just made yours." Her voice was clear and high like little chiming bells. She winched. Addy could never figure out how to drop her accent while she was underwater. Not that it matters. If he doesn't figure out who she is it would be a miracle.

The fishmen looked at her shocked, his mouth hung open.

"How are you…."

Addy didn't give him a chance to finish, charging at him like a bullet. With one quick kick to his face she sent him careening into the far wall. The was a loud crash the water rippled from the impact. They must have heard that above.

"That was easier than expected," she mumbled. Looking around she spotted Luffy at the bottom. He was just holding on, the bubbles becoming less and less though he still had enough energy to wave at her.

"Hold on Captain," she yelled out. Addy rushed down as quickly as she could only to feel slight vibrations in the water. "Toxic Spike Rain!" she heard a voice call out.

Turning quickly she got out her whip and sliced clean through the spikes that were coming at her, splitting them in half. A greenish liquid was leaking out of the tips. If she was hit by one of those, than she would be in trouble. It might slow her down slightly and when facing a fishman she could not afford that. Not with Luffy's life at stake.

"So I guess you're not out yet?" she said turning to face the fishman. He was floating along at eye level. "Fine then, if you're going to make this difficult, then I will just have to turn it up a notch.

Kicking her feet she swam downwards, the fishmen mimicking her moves throwing out another set of poison spikes in all directions. However there were gaps in the pattern along her to curve around them.

"Lautan Nadi!" she called out slashing her whip in the water creating a wave which sent back all the spikes towards the pufferfish. Unlike her he wasn't able to dodge.

However instead of collapsing from pain and poison he started laughing.

"Fool," he cackled. "You might be able to breath underwater but fishmen are still the superior species." He absorbed the spikes back into his body with a shucking sound. Addy shuddered. She never wanted to hear that sound again. "Toxic Spike Death!" This time the spikes that rained from his body were much bigger and there were at least three times more.

Addy moved, dodging and weaving among them. She might be the better swimmer, but that doesn't mean much if she can't actually damage her opponent and eventually he might get a lucky shot in. The spikes were also going in Luffy's direction more than she was comfortable with. If Luffy got hit then there was nothing she could do, even if she got him breathing again. There was only one way. Moving out of the path of the spikes coming towards her, she started circling her opponent.

"What are you doing now?" he asked. "Plan on making me dizzy?"

"Hunting," she answered before speeding up her circling. Faster and faster she circled him creating a miniature whirlpool.

"What the?" The fishman asked as he was being sucked down. He tried to swim but the current was too strong, pulling against him. He was trapped.

It was then that Addy shot out from the middle, completely unaffected by the makeshift current, until she was right behind the fishman. He tried twisting around to face her but he was trapped. He thrashed around but there was no breaking free. Even sea kings could not break out of this trap. She turned her whip so that the handle was directly in the empty spot on his back.

"You can't beat me… I am a creature of the sea. You might be able to breath but we are still stronger. Nothing is superior to us. You humans are so weak and pitiful compared to us," the fishman cried out. "Arlong will make you pay for this. He will kill you all and wipe out the village."

"You may be a creature of the sea," Addy said digging the hilt deeper into his back. "But I am its daughter, Adamaris of Delphi, and I sentence you to death. Lautan Pedang!"

There was a click as she pressed a button on her handle. A thin 10 inch blade came straight out of the handle, plunging itself into the fishman. He made a gurgling sound and deflated going back to his regular spikeless size which was no bigger than she was. Addy pushed the button again and the blade retreated back into the whip.

Blood was pouring out of the wound and unable to keep himself down, he started floating upwards belly up. If he wasn't already dead he was soon going to be. Addy didn't want to take the chance of him waking up. Giving herself away wasn't exactly a smart move.

"That is going to take forever," Addy said. She ducked down below the body and swam down until she reached the bottom. She suddenly surged upwards like a geyser adding a slight spin to her movement. Right before she reached him, she flipped kicking him straight into the air. That should get their attention. Sanji and Zoro should realize what that meant. Her fight was done.

Now that there weren't any distractions she could go tend to Luffy. Scanning the bottom she spotted him and he didn't look good. There weren't any bubbles and judging by the lack of chest movement, he was no longer breathing. She also spotted Nojiko holding onto his head while Genzo was holding a hammer trying to smash the rock apart without much success. The buoyancy was getting in the way. Quickly swimming over, she floated just above them.

"How is he doing?" she asked. Both of them stared at her, Nojiko arching an eyebrow. For humans they could really hold their breaths. "Right you can't actually answer." She grabbed Luffy by the shoulders and started to drag him closer to the shore. She managed to make it a couple of inches before she put him down again. He would be dead by the time that she made it to the surface and that hammer wasn't going to do the trick. Luffy wasn't going to make it unless… She was an idiot.

"Okay look," she said swimming around Nojiko and Genzo. "There is no way we are going to be able to break that rock and eventually the two of you are going to run out of air. I am going to check to see how the others are doing and try to get Sanji or Zoro down here. See if you can stretch Luffy so that at least his head is out of the water." The two of them nodded and Addy started swimming back up. It look less than a minute to break the surface doing so without rippling the water. She only brought her head up, the rest of her was still under water.

What she saw however wasn't good. The pufferfish was on the ground looking half-dead which was probably the only good news as that meant he wouldn't be waking up anytime soon. Or at all. She couldn't even see where Sanji was though if she had to guess from that huge hole in the wall was a good indication then he was over there somewhere. Zoro looked like he was about to collapse. His whole body was trembling. There was no way he was going to be able to help Luffy. The effort might kill him. Hachi was standing not far away holding six swords. His extra arms did seem to have a use.

"The Six Swords Style, huh? What joke!" Zoro growled out.

"Roronoa Zoro," Hachi said.

"Zoro," Addy whispered. He was something. Power and death radiated off his shoulders. No wonder he garnered such a high reputation. At full strength Zoro would basically be a demon. Maybe he was a demon. Addy certainly would not be surprised if that was the case.

"I'll tell you one thing, octopus," Zoro stated. "There's a man I need to meet up with. Until I see him again… my life can't be taken away even by Death himself!"

"Considering the fact that you should probably be dead by now, I will take that statement as fact," Addy said. "Though don't start doing anything too taxing, not that you need to.

Zoro grinned at her. "Let me guess, your opponent was no match for you either. You caused quite a surprise up here."

"I would hope so. Tell me were the fishmen mildly surprised or outright shocked? Considering how pompous they are I am going to go with the latter."

"You'd be right."

"You know, girl. That tongue of yours will get you in trouble someday," Arlong said.

Addy looked towards him, "Why is it always girl? Like do I not get a nickname? I mean you can come up with something better than girl right? Like seriously sexist much?"

"If it wasn't for the fact that the rubber man is already dead and that you be easy prey I would kill you now." Addy bit her tongue and tasted blood. Getting into a verbal sparring match with Arlong would be a really bad idea despite how much she wanted to. Ah well, she would save it for the Marines later, if they were still around.

"Luffy!" Zoro said. "How is he doing?"

Addy grimaced, unsure of what to tell him. If she said Luffy was somewhat safe than Arlong might jump in the water and that… that would be chaos. No one would walk out of here unscathed, or more likely alive.

"Captain is… in a bad spot right now. Like I was after I got beat up by the Bandit King's goons."

"Alright, I will be down in a moment. Just let me take care of this octopus." He undid the bandanna from around his arm and tied it around his head. "You keep him alive until I get there."

"What's going on Roronoa Zoro?" Hachi asked. "I'm not sure what's going on, but you look like you're in pain. You think you can defeat my Six Swords Style in that condition? Everyone in the whole world thinks the same way."

"I am pretty sure that Zoro could defeat you if he was blindfolded and had one arm missing," Addy said. She turned back to face Zoro. "Though considering your condition it might be best if you just sit out on the rescue mission unless Sanji is completely out."

"I am fine," he growled.

"Right sure you are. I however don't want to explain to Captain why his first mate is no longer alive. It would kind of defeat the point if we rescued one nakama only to lose another. So just defeat the octopus and sit tight."

He rolled his eyes at her and she sighed. There was no way he was going to listen to her.

"You make sure that he stays alive," Zoro told her. He turned to face Hachi who was looking more confused than anything. "I'll show you the Three Swords Style. Yosaku! Johnny! Let me use your swords!"

"Right," Addy dived back down underneath the water just as Zoro grabbed the swords from the air. Zoro would be fine. He better be fine. They all had to walk away from this. Merry would never let her hear the end of it if she didn't. Addy spotted Luffy and sighed with relief. His neck was stretched and Addy could see that it went all the way to the surface. She saw that Genzo was giving him CPR. Swimming down towards him, she gave him a tap on the shoulder. He almost leapt up in shock though instead he floated around a bit.

"It's alright, I will take over from here," she said moving her hands to replace his. She started doing compressions on Luffy's heart. "You head back up. I will be fine down here. Let me know as soon as he starts breathing."

She saw Genzo started to swim up, though it was a few minutes until he reached the surface. Addy hoped that the two of them were okay. Nojiko was still badly wounded after being shot. They were all going to be scarred after this fight.

Addy felt vibrations in the water coming up from above. If a fishmen had jumped in than she would be in trouble. She was one of the things keeping Luffy alive right now. She looked up and burst out smiling. Sanji was heading towards her, swimming down as fast as he could, which was actually pretty quick considering he was human. So he managed to defeat his opponent. Good news.

She felt another vibration and her smile dropped into a frown. The ray had also jumped into the water. Sanji had jumped in without defeating his opponent.

"Idiot," she screamed. "What were you thinking?" Addy couldn't move to help him. If she stopped compressions than Luffy might die. "Never mind just break the rock and I will take care of the fishmen."

Addy though she saw Sanji try to say something if the gurgling was any indication and his eyes almost seem to turn into hearts. He also started swimming faster. Well at least he was easily motivated.

She turned her attention back on Luffy. "Come on Captain," she said. "Come back to us. We need you. Your nakama need you. Please breath."

"Fishman Karate… Forearm Sledge!" the ray yelled out slamming into the back of Sanji neck.

"No!" Addy yelled. She never felt more useless than she did at this very moment. Her nakama was fighting an opponent that she could beat and she was stuck here trying to keep her captain alive. Why? Why? Why did she send Genzo away? Ocean curse it.

Keeping her hands on Luffy she closed her eyes and bowed her head. There was still one thing she could do.

"Dad," she whispered in her native tongue. Ocean around her changed becoming something more. She could feel it embrace her, wrapping her in a comforting hold. "I know the fishmen are your people but please help us. What they are doing isn't right. Please just give Sanji the strength to fight. Give us the strength to end this."

She felt the water around her warm up slightly and felt a slight current pull at her hair. Just as suddenly as it disappeared Ocean went back to normal.

"Thank you," she said compressing Luffy with a new found vigor. Everything would be okay now. They had the backing of Ocean behind them and once Luffy was back and breathing again, Arlong wouldn't know what hit him.

* * *

Moves

Lautan Nadi- One of Addy's underwater moves basically means Ocean Pulse

Lautan Pedang- Ah now this is important. After this the blade is going to become a staple. Translated it is Ocean Sword

Review Responses

hellspam- I had to do an underwater fight, there was no way I could write this arc without one. I think I am just going to be writing Sanji and part of Luffys. You will see how that will work out. Also you just had to ask the big question, what am I doing with the timeskip. My current answer is that once we hit Sabaody I am going to do a poll to see what you guys want since I have a few ideas that I can work with

RedHairedOctavia-I hope that this chapter lived up to your expectations. :)

Jinx-I like the embedded idea, I might work with that. As for how Addy's whip is going to end up with seastone I think part of this chapter gives it away.

Jag- I am glad to hear that. I update every Monday, Wednesday and Friday so keep an eye out.

psychopathonadiet- I think that it went well. So far it might be one of the best moments of the arc. I am really getting into the flow.


	39. Debts Paid in Full Part 10

_Author's Note:_

 _This was a surprisingly difficult chapter to write but I thought it turned out well. I won't know unless you review :). It is based on episode 40. As always review and let me know what you think. I am happy to take suggestions._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Come on, come on, come on!" she shouted at Luffy trying to get his heart to beat. "You have to get up. We haven't even made it to the Grand Line. We have so many adventures ahead of us. You don't get to die on me now. Not before you become Pirate King." She glanced over her shoulder to look at how Sanji was faring. Not good was the answer. He was just idly floating in the water not moving. It was like he was suspended. Why did he jump in before he finished off his opponent? Of all the stupid things to do…

"Sanji wake up," she whispered. "I promise I will let you shower me with all the affection you want for as long as you want, just wake up." She knew that he couldn't hear her but she wanted to keep herself hidden from the ray. A few more compressions could be the difference between life and death for Luffy.

She could hear the ray laughing at Sanji's predicament. Under water the ray looked much bigger than he did on the surface. There was no way the fishman wasn't going to notice her. If he decided to pick a fight with her than Luffy probably wouldn't make it.

"You're wasting your time," the ray said. Yep he definitely noticed her. "What's the point of extending his life like that? I'll sink you as well."

"Considering I can't drown your effort would be wasted," Addy responded back.

The ray cocked his head. "Interesting, I am curious as to how you are doing that though it doesn't matter. You're going to die as easily as your friend did." He started swimming towards her quickly. Addy swallowed and prepared for the impact. If could make a few more compressions that's all she needed. She hoped.

He was suddenly yanked back and Addy could hear him scream in pain. She let out a big smile when she saw what caused it. Sanji had grabbed onto his long braid and was yanking it pulling him back through the water. The blow Sanji had taken hadn't knocked him out.

"Ocean thank you," she said. "Though I guess this means that I have to live up to my promise. Sanji! Get over here and start compressing Captain, or kick the fishman's ass! Whichever you think will be faster!"

"You damn human!" the ray growled. He pulled his hair out of Sanji's grip. "Are you seriously trying to fight me in the water?! You're an inferior species that has to worry about holding your breath!"

An inferior species that managed to wipe out most of your crew, Addy thought with relative ease. Though to be fair she also did help out some. However it was mainly Luffy taking everyone out with the Sea Cow. The only reason Zoro was having trouble was because of his fight with Mihawk. She hoped that he was alright. As stupid as the move was having Sanji jump in it was also the smart thing. If it was Zoro than chances are they would definitely have one dead nakama. Addy shuddered at the thought.

Sanji had a tight grip on his mouth, covering it with both hands, trying to not let any air escape. The ray laughed, he seemed to be doing that a lot. It was a sort of throaty laugh that came from deep in his chest. It vibrated through the water. Addy could feel it even from where she was. "Okay, I'll fight. Fishman Karate! Dueling Hair Tether." He started spinning like a top before launching his long ponytail towards Sanji wrapping it around his waist and pulling Sanji towards him.

"Shit," Addy said. Seemed like the ray was a bit of a whip user, that would be a massive problem in an underwater fight. There were a few reasons Addy used a whip, that being one of them. Underwater a whip was better than even the best made sea stone sword when it came to moving through water. Along with the range that it gave it made up for its lack of killing power. She gave herself a mental note to show the crew how to deal with whip users. There were very few of them but that made them all the more dangerous to fight.

As Sanji got closer to the ray he tried to unleash one of his kicks. Slowed down by the water the fishman dodged it easily. There was no way Sanji would get the momentum he needed to fight down here. Though even his weak kicks could probably cause some serious damage.

"What's that?" The fisman said. "The power of your kick dropped in half. That's the limit for humans. But Fishman Karate's power doesn't drop even in the water! Rather, depending on the technique, the power doubles. Fishman Karate! Instant Undersea…" he launched a punch at Sanji which he dodged. If that was all that move was, "Bowel Buster!" He then swiftly kicked Sanji in the stomach. Addy winched. This was not going well. Fishman Karate was an absolute pain above water. Underwater it became almost unstoppable. It was one of the reasons that fishmen were so feared and why they kept it a closely guarded secret. Anyone could actually learn how to use it. The problem was finding a teacher.

Sanji was still tied up in the braid. The ray started spinning again. "Fishman Karate!" He went closer to Sanji kicking him right in the back of the head. "Flaming Axe Kick." For a move called flaming axe kick it didn't involve very many flames. Or any at all. Not that it mattered. Sanji was sinking in the water now and the fishman was matching his speed. Addy felt helpless. All she could do was watch her nakama get beaten to death while she kept their captain alive. She cursed herself. If only she was stronger, paid more attention to the lessons that her mother gave her, then maybe he abilities would be more developed. Not for the first time she wished she had her mother's prodigious talents. She would be able to defeat the fishman from here instead of being forced to watch her nakama die.

"Back Foot Jawbreaker," the fishman cried out, kicking Sanji in the jaw. It was a miracle Sanji wasn't dead yet. Addy could just sense out that he was still alive. She also felt something else. Water tension where there shouldn't be any…. Around Sanji? Addy let out a small smile. Ocean was protecting him, forming a slight shield around her nakama that protected him from the full force of the blows. Death hadn't claimed him yet. If it did…

"Special Attack!" The Ray yelled pulling his arm back. "Guffaw Paw Bomb." He slammed his palm directly into Sanji's face sending him back several feet through the water the braid coming undone around his waist as well. Sanji smashed straight into the wall, close to where Addy had launched the pufferfish into.

"I thought you were going to help us!" she yelled to the sea. "Please!" The water rippled and she knew that they were helping. It was the reason that Sanji was able to hold his breath for so long. That along with the slight shield was the only reason that he was still alive.

"There is no one here to answer your prayers," the fishman said. There was a sudden rumble from the wall and Addy saw Sanji trying desperately to swim to the surface.

"Apparently you're wrong," she replied. "Maybe the truth is there is no one around to answer yours."

"Am I now?" He laughed. "I don't need prayers to defeat you." The fishman rushed to Sanji, trying to get to him before he reached the surface. Sanji was so so so close. Only a foot or two and he would be there. Unfortunately the fishman succeed.

"Where are you going?" he asked Sanji. Sanji looked like he was in a near state of panic desperately clinging to whatever air he had left. "Seriously, what amazing strength… I can't believe he is human." Addy couldn't really believe it either. Even with Ocean's blessing Sanji had managed to withstand a lot. Between him, Luffy and Zoro, they basically formed a monster trio. Addy wondered what that made, her Usopp and Nami. The ray started laughing and Addy felt her stomach drop. She hoped things were going better on the surface. That Zoro was still standing and Usopp wasn't lying in a pool of his own blood. That Nojiko and Genzo were taking care of Luffy and that he hadn't been discovered by Arlong and all her efforts down here have been in vain.

"If I remember correctly," the ray stated. "You said that those who harm a lady are crap. But look how it's turning out. This is the outcome of your cheap chivalry. You won't be able to escape from me and will die. That woman down below us and the rubber man will also die. Zoro, that long-nose man and the rebel villagers. They'll all be killed"

"You'll be the one dying if you lay one more hand on my nakama," Addy stated. Her eyes were full of rage and the water seem to ripple and heat up around her. If he killed Sanji than she would rip him limb from limb and use those to beat Arlong to death. That will show Arlong who the superior race is.

"Somehow I doubt that," the fishman responded. "With all that's happened, Nami won't get away with betraying us!"

"YOU BETRAYED HER!" Addy screamed. "What did you think was going to happen?! For all the talk about how you are so much better than humans, in the end you are the weak ones! We will defeat you, not only because we are stronger, faster, smarter but because we have honor, loyalty, love and don't have to resort to dirty tricks in order to keep our nakama! We stay because we want to! And this is coming from a crew whose captain was most likely raised in the woods somewhere, a former bounty hunter, a coward, a thief, a fighting cook, a caravel, and a heritage pirate! There is no question here, no doubt in my mind! WE WILL WIN!"

He laughed at her. A deep throaty laugh that shook the water. "Big words for the losing side. I mean look at your crewmate here. With his superficial chivalry, he can't protect anyone, let alone Nami, after all! Even if he's kinda strong." The ray gripped the back of Sanji shirt and held him up to his face. "That's all silly talk by a helpless human. You humans can't handle a sudden change in water pressure, right?" He wrapped his hands around Sanji body.

"NO!" Addy yelled, almost taking her hands of Luffy and charging towards the ray. As soon as Luffy's heart was beating on his own, the fishman was dead. Right now she didn't care about the consequences. Let her mother and grandmother deal with the backlash. They were used to it. It had happened before. She couldn't lose another nakama. Not again. In her mind flashed Riley and for a second Addy hesitated with the compression before continuing. She was doing all this for the both of them. Because they promised each other. Her mind drifted back to their old crew. To Vesta and Obi. Cassandra and Austen. Pearl, David, Mom… along with everyone else. Addy left them all behind but that was her decision. She made her choice and was going to have to live with it.

"In other words, if you rapidly dive into the abyss your organs will burst out of your body."

"CAPTAIN!" she yelled at Luffy. "WAKE UP!"

"Pulverizing Pressure Plunge!" The fishman plunge to the bottom with Sanji in tow. She could hear the fishman laughing as Sanji body started to cave in on itself.

"Please Captain…" she cried. "Please… please…please. Ocean help him. You said you would, so please help him." Blood started coming out of Sanji mouth as soon as they reached the bottom. Addy could feel it as it diluted through the water.

Turning to look at Sanji she saw that he held up one finger towards the fishman and not the finger she was expecting. What was he doing? Did he really want to experience that again? Or did he have a plan? He better have a plan.

"This man won't die yet?" the ray asked. "Then, I'll give you that attack as you wished!"

He brought Sanji back to the surface again. If they made it out of this alive Addy had to make sure to tell the doctor to check to see if Sanji got the bends. Suddenly, without warning Sanji bit into his captor's shoulder. Right where his gill was.

"SANJI YOU ARE A GENIUS!" she called out laughing. He breathed air into the gills causing the fishman to start drowning as well causing him to carry both of them to the surface. At least Sanji was back on land now. Though she was still here with Luffy and he trapped by the rock that she couldn't break.

"Ocean Damnit," she yelled, her arms continuing compressions. This was just her luck wasn't it? If it wasn't for the fact that she was underwater right now, her arms would have given out a long time ago. As soon as she went back on the surface and dried off her arms were going to be useless. If Luffy wasn't rubber she probably would have broken several of his ribs by now. Though if they were on the surface Luffy would have probably broken himself out, defeated Arlong, and they would all be celebrating. That would have been a great time saver. Unfortunately she was stuck down here trying to keep him alive, while two of her nakama were most likely dying.

She heard a crash from the surface. Hopefully that was Sanji beating the fishman into paste. If he was as strong as she thought he was than it wouldn't be a problem. It also meant that only one of her nakama was dying, unless Usopp was in trouble. Luffy's color was also improving which at least meant that he was no longer dying. Still trapped but no longer immediately dying only close to it. Addy wondered if he could suffer from hypothermia. The water wasn't that cold but she wasn't exactly the best person to judge. She could walk around with what she normally wore during winter on a winter island and still be fine. As long as it was snowing of course.

"Come on Captain," she said. "We have all defeated our opponents. Heck even Usopp has probably defeated his. It's your turn now. You need to defeat Arlong. Sanji and Zoro can't hold out forever and I am down here trying to save you. We need you Captain. Your nakama need you…. I need you."

* * *

PsychopathOnADiet- I don't want to give to much away now so your going to have to wait until it is fully revealed. To somewhat answer your question it is really going to be based on your interpretation of the explanation which is going to come... soonish and by soonish it means before they defeat Crocodile.

Jinx- Yeah Addy and seastone is going to be fun to figure it all out. Luckily I don't have to fully sort it out until the timeskip which is way way in the future. Hopefully you like this chapter as much as you liked the last one.

blackcat711- I was hoping for that reaction :). And now we finally have Addy's full name thought it might bring up more questions than answers.

hellspam- Sanji is easy to write when I don't have him talking. The CPR thing with Nojiko and Genzo always bugged me since I am pretty sure that no one, even in this universe, could breath for that long so Addy was a perfect fit for that. Ah Loguetown. Loguetown is going to be interesting, I will say that much, though I do agree she should be at the cooking competition.

Jag- I sort of have to update often considering if I didn't we would be here forever and I would like to write the end of this at somepoint. In several years.

Kaore Ryuy- I don't know how I am going to make Skypeia interesting. Considering the fact that a running gag is most likely going to be how much Addy wants to burn down the forest I don't have high hopes.


	40. Debts Paid in Full Part 11

_Author's Note:_

 _This arc has been going well so far. This is based on episode 41. As always please review and let me know what you think or what you would like to see._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"What is going on up there?" Addy asked still compressing Luffy. She could hear the sound of rubble falling into the water and feel it reverberate. Sanji should have been down here by now. Unless he was defeated, or Arlong got involved.

Addy shuddered but continued her work. This was all she could do right now even if all she wanted to do right now was make sure that the others were safe. She had to trust the others.

"Come on Captain you have to live. Live! Live! Live! Live! Live!" She felt something grab her arm and she almost pulled back in shock. Luffy's hand was full wrapped around her wrist. Addy almost burst out into tears and let out a joyous laugh.

"I knew you would wake up Captain. You haven't let us down yet. Now let me check on the others." She carefull pulled Luffy's fingers off her wrist and took off like a shot towards the surface. Luffy was alive. She had to tell the others.

Without rippling the surface she launched herself onto the shore landing perfectly right in front of Arlong. Her arms felt like jello and the pain in her shoulder and ankle came back with a force. Looking around she almost stepped back in the water in shock. Zoro and Sanji were on the ground bleeding severely surrounded by puddles of water. She felt her heart leap into her throat. Nami was leading the crowd in what looked like an attack against Arlong.

"Addy!" Nami cried out. "Luffy is…"

"Alive and well," she huffed out unfurling her whip. As if to prove her point a large spout of water appeared from behind what was left of the wall. She gave Arlong a long glare. Addy was hoping that it wouldn't come to this but it appeared that she had no choice. Luffy was still trapped.

"Hm?" Arlong muttered. Addy gripped her whip tighter. "What the?"

Sanji started moving slightly on the ground lifting his head up to see the spout. "Finally…" he mumbled. "All we have to do now is remove his leg weight."

"Oh." Zoro sputtered. Addy recoiled slightly. Zoro was still conscious. Was that even possible? He started to roll over to look at the spout as well. "So that's what you meant."

"Could it be?!" Yosaku shouted.

"Luffy!" Johnny yelled.

"What?!" Nami asked.

"Luffy was thrown underwater after getting himself stuck in the floor," Addy said. "I have been trying to keep him alive while Zoro and Sanji took care of the fishmen up here so that one of them can break the rock holding Luffy down."

Both Sanji and Zoro were struggling to get up. Zoro using one of his swords as a crutch.

"30 seconds!" he stated. "I won't last longer than that."

He put his white sword in his mouth as Nami looked at him in wonder. "Zoro!" she exclaimed.

Addy smiled at him. "I think we can make it last slightly longer than that." She cracked her whip. Arlong didn't know what was about to hit him.

"That'll be enough!" Sanji yelled taking off his shoes and jumping in.

"There isn't a fountain over there," Arlong said looking at the direction where the spout came from. "Could it be that rubber man?!" He took a step towards the water but before he could put his foot down Zoro sliced him across the cheek and Addy had her whip wrapped around his arm. Both were standing in front of him blocking his path.

"Don't worry about it," Zoro heaved. "It's nothing."

Addy looked at him worried. If they lost Zoro…"Are you sure you don't want me to take care of this?"

"He is tougher than he seems. He can turn drops of water into bullets."

"Yeah, its Fishman Karate. Nothing I can't handle."

Arlong laughed. "You are very confident for a human."

Addy rolled her eyes. "In case you haven't noticed by now." She tightened her whip causing it to cut into his arm. "I'm not human. Not even close. You dammed half-fish."

"I thought I told you not to say those words ever again…" Arlong said licking the blood from his scratch

"Actually you told Zoro earlier. I am just getting in on the game. It is fun. I wonder what other insults we can come up with?"

Arlong looked slightly taken aback. "Doesn't matter what you are. You are no better than the humans you associate with. In the sea, one with Devil Fruit powers is supposed to lose even the energy to struggle, as well as his powers, and die. If he's still alive, that means someone is putting a damped on this game."

Zoro was breathing hard. The longer Addy kept Arlong distracted the better. "Actually I think we followed the rules of your game rather well. If we could defeat your minions before our Captain died we would win. Looks like we did just that. You're the one breaking the rules here," Addy stated.

"It didn't seem like a fair game from the start," Zoro said.

"That's true as well," Addy added in. "We were at an advantage."

"At any rate," Arlong butted in. "If there's a hindrance, I need to check on it. Out of my way."

"That's not happening," Addy said. Both her and Zoro stepped closer to each other, shoulder to shoulder, forming a wall. Suddenly what looked like a white ball came flying out of nowhere aimed for Arlong. He brought his hand up and it hit him dead on spilling white and yellow liquid all over.

"Egg Star!" Usopp called out. The three of them turned towards the voice. "I've got your back, Zoro, Addy!"

"Usopp! Is he all right?!" Yosaku asked.

"How brave! What a gallant arrival!" Johnny pointed out.

"Fight to the full extent," Usopp shouted from the hole that Sanji created when he was thrown into it. Addy and Zoro sweat dropped.

"That's where you are?!" the crowd shouted. Well at least they knew he was alive. That was good news.

"Usopp!" Nami called out.

"Listen, Nami!" he yelled. "I beat one of the leaders! One of the leaders! One of the leaders! The guy with a face like this." He pulled out his jaw and elongated it, making him look like the smelt-whiting. He laughed as his face snapped back into place. "Fishmen are a piece of cake!"

"You defeated… Choo?!" Arlong asked. Addy could see the anger rising in his eyes, veins popping on his forehead.

"Serves you right!" Usopp answered. "With my arrival, the fight comes to a climax at once! It heads into the final chapter!"

"Zoro, Addy." Yosaku shouted. "Stand strong and stop Arlong!"

"What do you think we are doing?" Addy shouted back.

"I won't let you have your way!" another voice called out. One Addy hoped she would never hear again. She turned her eyes wide as she saw Hachi struggling to get up, blood pouring from his mouth. As long as he didn't get up everything was going to be fine.

"Zoro," she said. "I thought you…"

"Hey, Arlong! Look this way!" Usopp shouted. That caught his attention. "Usopp!" He stretched a rubber band between his finger and thumb. "Rubber band of Doom!"

"Standing in my way…" Arlong said completely ignoring Usopp. "Looks like you two want to die first."

"Now! Go Zoro, Addy!" Usopp yelled flicking the rubber band. It was beyond useless.

"No way I'll die," Zoro said also ignoring Usopp antics. "I'll break your proud nose!"

"Sounds good to me" Addy said. "Make him bleed."

Addy tightened the whip making Arlong wince in pain as Zoro swung for the nose. It hit it with a clang, like the sound of metal on metal.

"You fool…" Arlong chuckled. "It's a proud nose because it's unbreakable. If you were at your full strength, you might've been able to give it a scratch." Zoro pulled his sword away from Arlong's nose only to bring two up to stop it. Arlong pushed Zoro forward trying to break his stance. Addy jumped behind Zoro adding what strength she had to him. Together they managed to stall Arlong. He just laughed at them and Addy felt dread settle in the pit of her stomach. She could feel her ankle about to cave and she was pretty sure something had started bleeding again, although that could be Zoro, which was even worse news.

Suddenly there was a whole lot of commotion and Addy turned to look. Hachi was standing up. This was bad.

"Roronoa Zoro!" Hachi yelled waving his many arms. "I won't let you have your way! I'll crush your friend who went into the sea!" He jumped straight into the water with a splash and Addy jumped straight after him unraveling her whip from Arlong.

Strength filled her limbs up once more as she swam towards Hachi blocking his path to Luffy. Sanji wasn't there yet and the rock was still holding him down.

"If you think I am going to let you go anywhere near my Captain think again," she growled.

"You can talk underwater?! How?" Hachi asked stopping in surprise.

"You know, you're the first of the fishman to ask me that and not insult me. Doesn't mean I am going to tell you."

"That's just rude. For that you're going to experience my frenzy fists. Octopus-Fritter Frenzy!" All of his punches started coming towards her at once. She dodged each and every one of them. Even the one that seemingly came out of nowhere. Hachi was blind with rage which worked perfectly in Addy's favor. Addy then tasted something in the water, something metallic. Blood? She smiled as she realized what was happening.

"Stay still and your wounds don't reopen?" she said continuing to dodge. "Move however…" Blood burst out of Hachi in a star shape pattern. Addy assumed that is where Zoro sliced him. He started floating down to the bottom. She felt more then saw the rock break and the rumbles that it caused.

"Excellent," she said swimming up to Sanji and grabbing onto his arm. "Captain can take care of the rest." Luffy's body drifted upwards rapidly almost as if it was desperate to reach the surface. "Let's head up and watch the chaos." She started swimming up with Sanji holding onto her shoulders. He was trying to say something but all it sounded like was gurgling and his eyes were big hearts. She went slower than she normally would for his sake. After all he went through with the ray she didn't want to do anymore damage.

About halfway back to the surface she felt something else fall into the water some distance away. Addy felt her heart almost stop. If Luffy fell in again.

"Can you make it up from here?" she asked. Sanji nodded, breaking out of his daze. "Alright I will leave you here then." Sanji let go of her shoulders and she bolted straight towards the source of the disturbance. It was moving like crazy as if it was struggling. Whatever it was it was beyond the wall of the compound. Addy made it there in almost no time at all, the water seeming to bend around her. Her kind was the fastest swimmers in the world by a long shot. Even mermaids couldn't keep up with them.

Luckily the gate was still open from the Sea Cow. Turning the corner she sighed in relief as she saw that it wasn't Luffy but Zoro who was struggling. She then went into panic once it hit her that Zoro was drowning. She swiftly approached him. He was swinging his arms around wildly but clumsily. It was a simple matter for her to move around him. Addy gripped his jaw and turned it so that he was looking directly at her, his bright green eyes meeting her ocean green ones. He seemed to have relaxed instantly, wrapping his arms around her neck and pressing himself into her as close as he could, burying his face in her shoulder. Gently wrapping her arms around him, she kicked until they reached the surface. He let out a gasp and seemed to be gulping down air. Making sure that he kept his head above the water Addy gently guided them back to shore. They landed by a brick wall, a little farther away from where they got into the pot.

Zoro heaved himself on land, flipping himself on his back. Addy sat cross legged right by him. As soon as she got a good look at him she covered her mouth in shock. Zoro's bandages had been ripped clean off. His torso was just one long bloody scar from his left shoulder to his right him. If it was bad the first time she looked at it, it was way worse now.

"That idiot…" Zoro sputtered. "I'm going to kill him.

"Let me guess, Captain threw you into Ocean?" Addy asked.

Grabbing what little bandages she had left, she started to try to wrap them around Zoro. Before she could add even the first layer he grasped her wrist tightly.

"You… need… those," he stuttered.

It took barely any effort to pull his wrist off of her. "Zoro, you are going to die if I don't get these on you. If mine start acting up than I just need to jump in Ocean. Now let me fix you."

Zoro grumbled but complied knowing that he wasn't going to win this argument. It was silent between them the only sounds being Luffy beating Arlong into fish oil. There was a significant crash and Addy could hear what sounded like parts of a building coming down. She used up the last of her bandages and ran her hands over her handiwork.

"It's going to scar you know," she said.

"Don't mind."

"I didn't think you would. Females dig scars after all."

Zoro scoffed at that and rolled his eyes. Clearly the idiot didn't know anything about women.

"Aw don't be like that," Addy said playfully. "You know at least one female who does."

Zoro stared at her confused before a blush came over his face.

"Wait, you don't mean…" he stuttered as if unable to comprehend what she was telling him.

Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "You're not good with subtly are you?" He still looked dumbfounded at her previous statement. She rolled her eyes. "How about we wait to have this conversation after Luffy defeats Arlong and we get you treated? Perhaps your brain will be in a better place." Zoro nodded still looking stunned.

Addy lied down right next to him and closed her eyes, listening to the sounds of the battle going on behind her. The sounds of crumbling rumble and voices though she couldn't make out what they were saying. Probably something about how humans are inferior beings because they can't breathe underwater blah blah. Luffy announcing that he will be Pirate King. She could also hear Ocean's waves and Zoro breathing.

"You could swim over there and watch," he said.

"I could," she replied. "But I don't need to. I already know what's going to happen. Captain is going to win."

"Damn right he is."

"The only questions is how long it is going to take him to do so. I am going to give him 20 minutes give or take."

"I think it's more like ten. This is Luffy we are talking about."

"True, how about we make a betting game out of it. Whoever loses has to buy drinks at the next decent bar."

"I knew there was a reason I liked you."

* * *

PuddyKatz-It's going to stay real for awhile :).

Jag- That relationship is going to be developed slowly, though it is tied very deeply to what Addy is.

PsychopathOnADiet- I really should go more into explanations but as you can probably tell I really like dialogue. It keeps things moving forward and I am worried that if I go in depth with what Addy is feeling it will get bogged down. I will however work on it. Anyway I am glad you like the chapter.

hellspam- Skypeia no matter what is probably going to be a nightmare to write. I think having her fighting a few shandoran as well as a few of the goat people is probably what is going to happen. I am actually going to go with a more best friend vibe with Robin since the big sis thing is sort of Nami's relationship with Robin. Also Addy's race has a very strange relationship with siblings that I may go into. Glad you liked the chapter also Addy is probably never going to duel wield. As is going to be revealed there is an important reason Addy has one hand free.

Jinx-Yes the puffer fish is an oc. I think I am going to stick with her fighting oc characters as I have more creative control that way. With the Unluckies or Nero, who I forgot existed, they have really key roles in the plot that I don't want to exactly mess with. I love the idea of that running gag. Skypeia may be halfway decent afterall. As for going into the legends of her race, well you are going to actually get it rather soon. Have you seen the first tv special because that is where we are going next after this arc and a little of her background will be revealed.


	41. Debts Paid in Full Part 12

_Author's Note:_

 _So I know this is a bit earlier than normal but I am going to be extremely busy this week so I may miss a few updates. I will try my best however to provide all the One Piece needs, particularly since we should be finishing the arc this week. Anyway this chapter is based on episode 42. As always please rate and review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Do you have any idea what they are saying over there?" Addy asked.

"Yeah, I can make it out, can't you?" Zoro answered.

Addy pointed to her ears. "I can't hear as well as humans when I am not in water. Basically all my senses take somewhat of a nose dive at least when I am out of the water. Though I don't actually know how they compare to regular humans."

"That explains some things… What are you?"

Addy paused and took a deep breath. This could change everything. "Does it really matter?"

"No."

Addy was taken aback by that answer. She wasn't expecting it. What she was expecting was this long list of reasons why they needed to know. How could they trust her otherwise? Did she not trust them?

"It is your own business," Zoro said. "I trust that you have your reasons."

"Yeah I do…" she mumbled.

"You have proven your loyalty several times over. Nothing else matters. Though I wouldn't mind knowing the limits to your senses. It could be crucial in a fight."

"I will go over it with you sometime." There was another loud crashing sound and Addy thought she heard someone shouting. Something about a pillar…

"Usopp yelled… 'He crushed the stone pillar with his teeth!'" Zoro said.

"That's not surprising. Arlong is a saw-shark. They can bite straight through bone. Those guys can also replace their jaws in seconds."

"Huh." There was a pause. "Luffy just declared that he will be King of the Pirates."

"Again, not surprising. If Captain didn't say it than I would be worried."

"Seems like Arlong was bragging again. Luffy seems to be pretty upset. Though Yosaku and Johnny are cheering him on."

"Someday you're going to tell me how you met those two. You really don't talk about your past a lot."

Zoro gave her a hard stare and arched his eyebrow.

"Point taken," Addy said.

The voices were getting louder now. Things were really getting heated between the two of them. She could just make out what Luffy was saying.

"Nothing! That's why I need help!" he shouted.

"That idiot…" Zoro muttered. "He is swinging swords around like a lunatic. At least he could use proper form."

"You can tell that from here?" Addy asked. Zoro shrugged and Addy stared at him wide eyed. His senses were amazing. This man was really going to be the World's Greatest Swordsman.

"Take that… and that… and that…" Luffy yelled and apparently according to Zoro swinging swords around. Addy thought she could hear the sounds of metal shattering but then Luffy was shouting again. "Clench your teeth!"

"What?! He shattered Arlong's teeth!" the crowd shouted. Sounded like the battle was going in Luffy's favor. Zoro might win the bet after all.

She felt Zoro shift around some and opened her eyes. He was struggling to get his bandanna off from around his head.

"Here let me," she said sitting back up and moving towards Zoro side. Zoro stilled and kept an eye on her. "You shouldn't be moving around too much." She untied it from the back of his head and quickly retied it around his arm.

"Thanks," he said a light blush on his cheeks. "Addy there is something I need to ask…

"I don't know how to use swords, you bastard!" Luffy yelled interrupting whatever Zoro was going to say. "I don't know how to sail the oceans! I don't know how to steer a ship! I can't cook! I can't lie either! I'm confident that I can't live without help!"

"Captain…" Addy stated softly. She had picked the right one.

"I can defeat you!" Luffy shouted.

"Damn right you can," Addy called out.

"If he dies, I'm gonna kill him!" Zoro mumbled.

"You would have to get behind me," Addy said. "I haven't followed Captain all this way only for him to die against a fishman."

"All right, Gomu-Gomu!" the crowd called out.

"Sounds like things are getting good," Addy said.

"Go ahead and babble you inferior species!" Arlong yelled out.

"Ugh! He's got new teeth!" Luffy shouted.

"You were right," Zoro said to her.

Addy scoffed, "Don't sound surprised. This isn't the first time I have dealt with fishmen. He is probably pulling out multiple sets of teeth right now."

"You really got around a lot didn't you."

"My mother was a pirate captain on the Grand Line. I lived with her for 19 years. Of course I got around. You have no idea some of the crazy stuff that I have seen. Though following Captain… my list has gotten progressively stranger."

"Gaimon?"

"Gaimon."

"Amazing!" Luffy yelled out.

"See told you," Addy stated. "What else would Captain get excited about?"

"Pretty much anything if it was shiny or food," Zoro countered.

"Alright I will concede to you there."

"Tooth Attack," Arlong shouted.

"Stop!" Luffy yelled back. She could hear Usopp screaming. He was loud. Perhaps they could use him as a warning beacon. Considering that he was practically afraid of everything that would work rather well.

"Wha! B-Brother!" Arlong cried out. Addy guessed Luffy grabbed a fishman and used him as a meat shield. Ruthless but effective. Perhaps Luffy was actually a pirate. Considering some of his actions, Addy occasionally questioned it. "You damn rubber man! How dare you use my brother as a shield!"

"You have to give Arlong some credit," Addy said. "Despite being an evil manipulative bastard, at least he cares about the fishman part of his crew.

Zoro hummed in agreement.

"Don't move you dammed rubber man!" Arlong shouted. The sounds of fighting really started up again. Addy got the feeling that Luffy was planning something. The only question was what.

"Look! I've got fangs, too!" Luffy yelled.

Addy face palmed. "You have got to be kidding me. This is really our Captain?"

"I thought as much,"Zoro replied. "This is Luffy for you." It sounded like it was getting harder for him to talk.

"Hey take it easy," Addy said placing a hand on his arm careful to avoid any injuries. "You can't go dying on me now. Who else would I talk too?"

"Addy," he replied turning his head to look at her. "I…"

"How long are you going to keep fooling around?!" Arlong yelled.

"Probably the entire fight…" Addy said. "You were saying something Zoro…"

"AHH!" Luffy screamed. "I got bitten by a shark!"

"That's because you're playing around!" Yosaku and Johnny shouted.

The sounds of fighting picked up again and it sounded intense. Rubble was being smashed and she could hear grunts, groans and screams. Mostly from Luffy.

"He got bit!" Yosaku and Johnny shouted. Addy winced. It didn't sound like things were going in Luffy's favor.

"How do you like your own teeth?!" Luffy yelled back. Never mind then. Luffy was doing fine.

"Ahh! Luffy's arm's gonna get bitten off!" Yosaku shouted. Okay maybe not. Addy almost wished she was watching this right now.

"Luffy!" Nami yelled. Things were bad if Nami was screaming. Zoro perked up as well a scowl forming on his face. The sound of Luffy screaming sent a chill down Addy's spine. She never wanted to hear that sound again. There was a crash and the screaming stop. Addy could feel her heart in her throat. What in the Ocean was going on? Then she heard a sound that she would recognize from anywhere. Splashing. She felt herself go cold.

"Don't worry," Zoro said placing his other hand on top of hers. "Luffy will handle this."

"Zoro…" Addy stuttered. "Arlong is in the water."

His eyes went wide and he tightened his grip on her. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely." She could hear the sound of moving water, apart from the seas, the ripples that Arlong was creating. Addy heard the splash as Arlong came up again, most likely launching himself at Luffy. There was a loud crash and Luffy screaming.

"Shark… Darts!" Arlong yelled now back on the surface. She felt the rumble he created from his attack. "Shark Darts!" he yelled again. Apparently Luffy was dodging. How long could he keep it up was the question. She could hear his yells of pain so at least he was still alive. The splash of water and Arlong was back in Ocean again.

"Luffy please hurry up and hide!" Yosaku called.

"He'll target you again!" Johnny added in.

"Get out of there!" Usopp screamed.

"Don't be stupid! Are you knowingly going to become a target?! Hide!" Sanji yelled.

"I don't want to! I'll catch him and break his nose!" Luffy responded. "Come on! Shark!"

"Didn't you hear us saying you should hide, Luffy?!" Usopp shouted. "You barely dodged his attacks and they all grazed you! If you take a direct hit, you'll die instantly!"

"Gomu-Gomu No Shield!"

"I don't think he has used that one before," Addy pointed out.

"He is always coming up with moves on the spot," Zoro stated.

"Well as long as it is effective it doesn't really matter." She felt Arlong emerge from the surface.

"He got hit!" Yosaku screamed.

There was another crash. "What?!" Usopp yelled. "Did he get hit?!"

"No!" Sanji replied. "He flung himself off!"

"You know they should be giving a play by play. That would be great," Addy suggested. "At least then we would have a better idea of what Captain was doing."

"Shark Darts!" Arlong yelled. There was another crashing noise.

"If he keeps this up your going to win the bet," Zoro said.

"You still have a chance. It's only been like 10 minutes give or take. You still have a margin of five."

"What happens if he ends at 15?"

"Then we will split the bill in half."

"You bastard!" Luffy called out. "That was by instinct, wasn't it?!"

"This is the final blow!" Arlong responded.

"You won't hit me! Gomu-Gomu no Finger Net! Fishing! Fishing! And! Spear!"

There was a loud smash and Addy felt the ground rumble again. The crowd was screaming. Addy hoped Luffy was winning. Zoro really needed to see a doctor soon.

"Well looks like you won," Addy said.

Zoro grinned. "Count on Luffy to come through."

"Well it is either that or Arlong has finally snapped and if he has done that then this fight is going to be over soon."

"You inferior human," Arlong yelled.

"Snap?" Zoro asked.

"Yeah, fishmen tend to do that if you get in there way for too long. Particularly if they have a superiority complex. I am surprised it took Arlong this long. It is rather nasty when it happens. They go into a sort of berserk mode but that also means that they sort of lose their ability to think clearly. If they ever had that ability."

"What did you do to me, a fishman?!"Arlong screamed. There was a crash followed rapidly by another one.

"Shark Saw!" Nami called out.

"It's a giant saw!" Johnny yelled.

Arlong was screaming, venting out all of his rage. Several loud crashes echoed through the area. The crowd screaming in support of Luffy.

"He escaped into the building," Sanji shouted.

The sounds of the fight went silent. Apparently no one was going to see their final confrontation.

"All we can do now is wait, I guess," Addy said. "Captain will sort this out."

"Addy there is something that I need to ask you." Zoro said. He was blushing slightly.

"What is it?" she asked concerned. She put her other hand on his forehead. He did seem to have a slight fever but Addy was sure that wasn't the cause of the blushing.

"I… er.. I mean…."

"You know I don't bite, unless you want me too."

Zoro started gapping at her like a fish and the blush turned to an interesting shade of red. It was really easily to get him riled up. Or maybe it was because it was her doing it. She got a sort of bubbly feeling in her chest at that thought.

"Sorry," Addy said. "I supposed that didn't help. What was it that you wanted to ask?"

"It's just that I…" He took a deep breath as if he was gathering up courage to ask. "I know you don't talk a lot and we have only known each other briefly, but I was wondering…"

"Yes…" She suspected that she knew where this conversation was going. That is if Zoro got around to asking before he died of old age.

"Do you…" he stopped mid-sentence and his eyes harden. The blush disappeared instantly. "Your shoulder," he stated.

"What about it?"

"You're bleeding."

Addy removed her hand from Zoro's forehead and placed it on her own shoulder. Removing it her hand was sticky with blood.

"Yep, I have definitely been pushing it too hard." Using both hands she unwrapped the bandages from around her shoulder. The wound had reopened and was bleeding profusely. With all the adrenaline pumping through her body, she completely blocked out the pain. Digging around in her bag for anything that she could use as a makeshift bandage, she finally grabbed the bloody shirt that she used on Nojiko. Ah well it needed to be washed anyway.

Wrapping it around her shoulder as tightly as she could, Addy managed to stave off the blood flow. At least for now. If she moved it any then it would start up again.

"You know that is going to scar," Zoro said keeping a close eye on her.

"No kidding," Addy replied keeping her hand on her shoulder. "I would have never figured that out."

"It's okay though. Some guys like scars." Addy gave him an exasperated if somewhat fond look. "You already know one."

"Remind me to give you some lessons on flirting. Stealing lines from the girl your trying to flirt with is not exactly a winning strategy. Particularly when I said them like 14 minutes ago."

"I wasn't… I mean…"

"Yes you were and like I said we will talk about it later when we both stopped bleeding to death and feeling light headed. My guess is that the blood loss is affecting your brain because normally we would never be having this conversation."

Zoro looked paler than normal. His normally tan skin was looking like it has gone white. Addy didn't even want to know what condition she was in, though it would be actually hard for her to go any paler than she normally is.

"What in the world is taking Luffy so long?" she grumbled.

"At this rate your actually going to win," Zoro stated.

"Nah the bet was for how long it would take for Luffy to beat the guy into goo. Sitting around and talking to him is not exactly that."

"So I still have a chance then?"

"If Captain can beat him in two minutes, once he actually starts fighting him again."

"What makes you think he is not doing it now?"

"Do you hear anything?"

"No."

"My point. You can hear Captain fighting for miles. He is not exactly subtle. I don't think he knows how to be."

Zoro shrugged his shoulders or at least he tried too. He emitted a hiss of pain. Addy placed a hand softly on his chest holding him still. Captain better hurry up. None of them were going to last much longer.

* * *

hellspam-I think a lot of us would be doing the same thing. I am going to start making a list of everything that should happen in Skypeia and by the end I might have a pretty exciting arc.

PsychopathOnADiet- This might be slight spoliers but Addy and Zoro are gonna take awhile to finally getting everything sorted. They both are sort of idiots but yes the ship is starting to leave dock.

blackcat711- I really like Addy and Sanji's relationship, which is going to be elaborated further as the story goes on. Addy is basically going to be Sanji wingman. Wish her luck.

Jag- Glad to hear it :).

Jinx- Seriously watch the tv special. It has one of the best out of character moments for Zoro. It is going to be great though I actually won't be revealing Addy race, that is going to come later, but more of the mythology of her people, without naming them. It may sound confusing now but all will be revealed in time.


	42. Debts Paid in Full Part 13

_Author's Note:_

 _So I just had a a hell week but its all over now. However I am not sure how this chapter turned out Next chapter will be on Saturday. Next week we will be back to our regular schedule. This chapter is based on episode 43. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Zoro was in bad shape and Addy wasn't doing much better. Her shoulder was still bleeding, so much so that she jumped in Ocean to try to curb it. That also had the side effect of also washing the shirt. Her ankle was giving her trouble as well. Addy was pretty sure that it was swollen and possibly twisted. The last thing she wanted was to be off her feet for a few days. It was getting harder for Zoro to breath and the blood was increasing from around his body. Yet somehow he was still holding up fine as if I were just a minor inconvenience. Addy wondered if she should drag him to the doctor now but if Luffy was still fighting she didn't want to take that risk. So far the entire fight has dragged on for fourteen minutes and did doesn't seem like it is going to stop anytime time soon. Particularly since it seems like Luffy and Arlong were taking a break.

"Addy, you okay?" Zoro asked.

"I'll live," she replied. "I am less sure about you."

"Until I face Mihawk again. I will not die."

"You say that but your body seems to have other plans."

Back towards Arlong Park something sounded like it was being smashed to a million pieces. Apparently Luffy and Arlong were getting back into it.

"What's that?!" Yosaku yelled.

"It's a desk!" Usopp answered.

"A desk?" Addy asked floating around on her back. "What is Captain doing? Throwing furniture around?"

"Wouldn't be the first time," Zoro groaned.

"Should we start the timer up again?"

"Nah, Luffy could just be throwing stuff for the hell of it."

"You're only saying that because you want to win."

"…No…"

Another smash once again coming from Arlong Park.

"Yeah I am starting up the time limit again," Addy stated. "You have one minute."

"Luffy better finish this quickly," Zoro said.

"What in the?!" Usopp called out. "There's an awful lot of stuff flying!" Another series of crashes. Was Luffy trying to destroy Arlong Park? It sounded like he was succeeding. From all the noise the building sounded like it was falling apart. The sounds of rubble hitting the ground, walls being torn down and who knows what else. Then there was silence. No one was speaking, all were waiting in anticipation. Addy could feel the tenseness in the air.

That was all broken with a bang. Addy mouth dropped open. Luffy stretched his foot through the ceiling of Arlong Park. She could even see it from behind the wall, reaching into the sky.

"Dear Ocean," she gasped.

"What!" Zoro asked attempting to sit up.

"No, just stay still. It will all be over soon."

The following sound Addy could only describe as two ice flows smashing into each other. It rumbled throughout her entire body, creating ripples in the water. It over powered everything else. She was almost half tempted to dive underneath the water in an attempt to escape. The sound following was even worse. She could feel it thrumming through her entire body but she couldn't stop watching.

Arlong Park was coming down.

Zoro let out a chuckle. "15 minutes huh? I guess we both will be buying."

"Yeah," Addy said coming out of the water. The bleeding started up again immediately but it was a little more than a trickle. She walked towards Zoro. "Do you think you can reach the water?"

"Are you sure that's safe?"

"The bandages I used are water proof so they would hold and I don't see any other way of getting you to the doc."

He nodded and stood up, somehow not collapsing from the effort. Addy hooked her good arm around him and carefully guided him to the sea. She gently slide him in. Despite the massive amounts of pain Zoro was in, he was handling it remarkably well. Addy thought that she would be dead. Scratch that she definitely would be dead considering that paper holds up better than she does.

"Luffy!" Nami screamed. Zoro and Addy glanced at each other before she took off through Ocean, careful to make sure that Zoro had his head above water. He had is arms wrapped around her chest and was resting on her back.

They came just in time to watch as Arlong Park fell to the ground, shattered into a million pieces. Dust flew into the air creating an enormous cloud and the blowback was intense. Sanji, Nojiko and Genzo were also in the water, having jumped in to avoid the debris.

"Looks like it is a party," Addy said swimming up towards them. Zoro had someone found a way to fall asleep on her, which was probably a good thing.

"Ah! My precious Addy sweet. You are so beautiful when you swim, as graceful as a seal."

"Thanks," she said rolling her eyes. She did make a promise. "Where is Captain?"

Sanji went serious for a moment before pointing to where the massive pile of rubble was.

"You're not…" Addy said. "You don't mean… CAPTAIN!"

"Which one won?!" Sanji asked.

Addy whipped towards him. "You mean we don't know? I assumed it was Captain."

"Given all this debris…" Genzo started. "Don't tell me it was…!"

Suddenly out of the top of the debris Luffy rose, the sun shining down on him. He had triumphed.

Addy swam closer along with the others, and got back on the shore with the crowd. As soon as the doc saw them him came rushing forth grabbing Zoro from her.

"Treat him well," she said before walking towards Nami.

"Wait you're injured as well," doc called out.

"I will be fine, the bleeding has been curbed." At least for the next five minutes. "You can treat me after you make sure he is safe." The doc shut up knowing he wasn't going to win the argument before taking a cursory look at Zoro.

Addy stood by Nami, their shoulders touching. Nami gripped her hand and together they stared at their friend, their captain, their future king.

He was breathing heavy, he had put a lot of effort into the fight. He took in a deep breath. "Nami!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "You're my nakama!"

Nami started crying, tears dripping from her eyes. She brought a hand up to wipe them away. "Yeah!" she said giving a slight nod.

The crowd started cheering behind them running towards Luffy in celebration. If Addy thought the falling building was loud, the crowd was worse way. She let out a big smile and wrapped her arms around Nami. Nami did the same to her and the started jumping up and down though it felt like her ankle was being stabbed.

"He always finds a way, doesn't he?" Nami asked,

"And he always will," Addy replied letting go of Nami.

"Way to go, Luffy!" Usopp was shouting behind the crowd jumping up and down excitedly. Addy and Nami walked towards him still holding hands. "You get my praise, too! Though I'd be praising you even more if you would've been the star performer instead of me!"

"Man, talk about being on pins and needles…" Sanji said coming up from behind them. "Take care of things quicker from now on, you damn jerk!"

"If he did that than I would be buying Zoro drinks," Addy said.

"What?" Nami asked confused. "What did you two talk about?"

Addy chuckled, "It is a long story. Now come on…" she pushed Nami towards Luffy. "He is going to want to see you most of all."

The crowd of people in their excitement accidentally dropped Luffy. He just sat up and laughed.

"This is awesome!" he said. Nami came up from behind him and placed his hat back on his head. Right where it belongs. He jumped up immediately upon seeing her and the two of them high fived. All the Straw Hats started laughing, even Zoro who had somehow successfully managed to stand up and walk over here without falling over.

"Hold it right there, you! A voice called out. It made Addy blood run cold and she immediately unfurled her whip and stalked towards the voice. Rat-man. He let out his rat squeaky laugh. He looked no different from when Addy last saw him, though he a different Marine squadron from last time. They were holding guns to the crowd and that made Addy tighten her grip on the handle. How dare they? After everything these people had been through. "What a lucky day today is! Well done. I watched the entire fight. Fluke as it was, I never once imagined the fishmen would lose to a bunch of nameless pirates like you. However, thanks to you all the money I was to give Arlong and all the money and valuables stored in Arlong Park are now mine! Everyone drop your weapons! I, Colonel Nezumi of Navy Branch #16, hereby take credit for what you've done here!"

It was then that they went for the kill. Zoro grabbed the back of his coat while Addy wrapped her whip around his chest.

"Don't ruin people's fun when they're finally happy!" he growled.

Addy tightened her whip. "Awesome more play things," she said.

"Wait… you're the girl that ran into me! I will make you pay for what you did!"

"Sure you will." She saw Luffy, Sanji and Usopp also approach and together they beat them senseless. Addy paid special attention to Rat Man who was too busy screaming at them to actually defend himself.

"J-Just you try laying a finger on me! You'll be sorry!" Rat face muttered his face bruised. He was lying on top of a pile of his beat up men.

"He's still saying' it?" Sanji asked rubbing the back of his head.

"Perhaps it is the only thing he can say?" Addy said flicking her whip towards him. He screeched out as it hit his arm.

It was then that Nami approached and kneeled down beside him. "This is for shooting Nojiko," she said placing her hand on his cheek. "And tearing up Bellemere tangerine orchard." She smashed him with her staff and sent him skittering across the water.

"Colonel!" one of his subordinates called out. Addy knocked him into the water as well.

"Don't get in the way of this," Addy said.

"Thank, Nami!" Nojiko stated. "That felt good!"

"Give 'im 1,000 more of those!" Genzo shouted.

Surprisingly Rat Man managed to climb out of the water. Nami walked up and started pulling on his whiskers, or at least that is what Addy thought they were.

"You guys are gonna clean up after those fishmen now!" Nami stated. "And you're gonna help rebuild the town of Gosa! And you're not gonna touch any money or valuables in Arlong Park! That's the island's money! Got it?!"

"Oww! Oww!" Rat-man cried out. "I-I'll do what you say!"

"And one other thing! Give me my money back!"

He was crying giving Addy a small amount of satisfaction. "I'll give it back! I'll give it back! I don't care anymore…" Nami let go and he started swimming off like someone set him on fire.

"I'll get you, you rotten pirates!" he shouted at them. "Straw hat man! Your name's Luffy right?! You're the captain, right?! Don't forget this! Some major stuff's gonnna happen to you now! You've made me mad! It's too late to regret what you've done! I'm gonna get revenge on you! Just you wait and see!"

"Says some major stuff's gonna happen now," Sanji said. The five of them were watching Rat Man swim off.

"How does he know I'm gonna be King of the Pirates?" Luffy asked.

"That's not what he means!" Zoro stated. "Man, you're stupid!"

"H-Hey, what do we do?! What if we really do wind up in big trouble?!" Usopp shouted. "Hey! Hey! Hey, I said!"

"Relax," Addy suggested. "He is probably just gonna slap a bounty on Captain. Nothing to worry about."

"How is a bounty nothing to worry about?!"

As the crowd ran all over the place the six Straw Hat pirates stood around there captain listening as he babbled about nothing and everything. Adrenaline keeping Zoro and Addy up and moving though that did not stop Luffy from poking Zoro's wound. The Straw Hats with the exception of Zoro laughed and Addy placed her arm on Zoro's shoulders. Usopp was soon recounting the battle from his point of view, with increasing elaboration of his part with Luffy believing every word despite him being there.

"Captain?" Addy asked wiping away the tears that were forming in her eyes from the laughter. "As fun as this is both Zoro and I need medical treatment before we pass out and I don't think any of us have eaten since we've gotten here…" at that mention Luffy stomach growled.

"FOOD!" he shouted. "Sanji! Make me something."

"I am sure that there will be food in the village Luffy," Nami said. "I guarantee that there is going to be a big celebration after…" Luffy wasn't paying her any attention running off to the village as quickly as he could.

Nami sighed before chasing after Luffy dragging Usopp with her. Sanji twirled after her, which Addy was sure wasn't possible until now. This left her and Zoro standing there.

"Shall we?" Addy asked. "The doctor is right over there."

Zoro groaned but complied and the two of them walks towards the doctor who was soon fussing over them, telling them to get to his office right away. Addy gave a sideways look towards Zoro who was looking grumpier by the second. Addy laughed… things were going back to normal. Now all she needed was a full flask and a couple of shots in her and she will be golden.

Half walking, half dragged towards the village by the Doc Addy felt the sun shine upon her. It was like this place was living under a shadow and only now has it been lifted.

'Eight years,' Addy thought. For humans that is a long time. But this place will recover and the people will move on and maybe someday this place will become a jewel of East Blue. The villagers were hard workers and determined as well. Marines should be coming by shortly to pick up the fishmen that they didn't kill. Perhaps in the next day or so depending on how long it will take Rat Man to get back to his base. She can't wait to tell Merry about all that has happened.

….Oh…. right she actually forgot to tell Merry about everything that has happened. As far as she knows they were captured and killed by fishmen. Addy was going to get an earful about that, as well as her and Zoro's injuries. That was going to be fun. After all it hasn't been the first time she has been yelled at by a ship. Pearl was the king of that but still trying to deal with an angry Merry… she was definitely going to need a few shots for that.

* * *

hellspam-I like writing Zoro and Addy together. They really do bounce off each other nicely.

Jag- Well here is more. There are going to be three updates this week but they just won't be at the regular time. My week has been chaotic I will say that much.

PsychopathOnADiet- Addy believes that if someone wanted her to know something they would tell her themselves. The past is only as important as someone makes it.


	43. Debts Paid in Full Part 14

_Author's Note:_

 _So here it is the final chapter of Debts Paid in Full. After this we are going to move into Hole in the Sea on Monday. This chapter is based on episode 44. As always please review and let me know what you think or what you would like to see._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

By the time, they got to the village everyone was in full celebration mode. Tables full of food and drink were out much to the excitement of Luffy who was eating everything he could get his hands on. Music filled the air and people crowded the streets. Walking through the crowd, joy just seemed to emanate from everyone. Doc ushered her and Zoro inside his office where Johnny and Yosaku were waiting.

"Alright so who is worse off?" he asked the two of them. Zoro and Addy pointed to each other. The Doc sighed. "Lovers…" Zoro turned into an absolute tomato while Addy chuckled.

"No, not quite yet," she said. Zoro looked at her like she just set herself on fire.

"Whatever the case. Let me take care of these two first. Lady you sit down. I got some ice for the ankle to keep the swelling down. Green guy take off your shirt."

"What?" Zoro asked confused by Doc rushed off to treat Johnny and Yosaku.

The two of them stared at each other before Zoro took his shirt off slowly, his injury clearly bothering him. Addy bit her lip. Zoro was a sex god that was the only explanation. She just wanted to run her hands across him. And once the scar was patched up…

"Addy?" Zoro gulped. "What did you mean by not…"

"Ah here it is," Doc called out coming back out of his storage closest with what looked like a surgical kit, a bag of ice and a massive roll of bandages. "You!" He pointed towards Zoro. "Sit down, I will get to you in a moment." Zoro sat down right beside Addy. "I meant on the other bed you twit." Continuing to blush, Zoro said something about it not being clear and that he was fine. Before shuffling to the other bed. Doc muttered something about uncooperative patients before starting to clean out Addy's wounds and wrap them in bandages. They were thicker than the waterproof ones and not as elastic but they would have to do until Addy restocked.

"Now keep that ice pack on your ankle. Once the swelling goes down then I will be able to see the damage better." Addy did as complied and the doctor gave a curt nod before moving onto Zoro who was lying down on the bed.

"If you were a normal person I would say that it would take you two years to recover," Doc said.

"Zoro is not exactly a normal person," Addy stated.

"Yeah, I know. I watched him fight. That doesn't mean this isn't going to be painful. I have to stitch the wound closed."

"Do whatever you need to Doc," Zoro said. "I can handle it."

"Very well." Doc turned towards Addy. "If you want to leave the room…"

"No, I'll stay right here," Addy said grabbing a chair and hobbling over towards Zoro and Doc. She placed the chair so that she was sitting by Zoro's head on the opposite side of Doc. "I won't be in your way will I?"

"No." Doc grabbed a needle out of his toolkit and threaded a piece of string through. Addy gently squeezed Zoro's arm before grabbing his hand. Doc wasn't lying when he said that it would be painful. Addy was certain that Zoro's screams could be heard outside. He was sweating bullets and gritting his teeth in pain. He held Addy's hand in a vice and she used her other hand to comb through his hair, trying to comfort him in what little way she could.

"You fool!" Doc said. "Trying to take care of such a big injury on your own…!"

"Actually that was me," Addy stated. "I tried to do the best I could under the circumstances but I am no doctor."

"What are you then?"

"I'm the helmsman."

"Honestly! Are you folks really pirates?! Don't you even have a ship doctor?!"

"A doctor? That sounds good, too!" Luffy called out from the window above Zoro's bed. Doc stopped the surgery temporarily so the two could talk.

"Captain," Addy said.

"Luffy?" Zoro asked.

"But a musician comes first. Right, Zoro?" Luffy stated holding a piece of meat in his hand.

"Why's that?!"

"Pirates sing, you know?"

"So why does that come first?!"

"Hey, Doctor. Where's Nami? She doesn't seem to be here."

"Nami, huh?" Doc asked. "If you can't find her around, then she's probably 'there'."

"Huh?"

"She'll show her face when she wants to." Doc started up the surgery again and Luffy left going off to ask someone else where there navigator was.

By the time the Doc was done it was nightfall. As soon as it was over Zoro had fallen asleep and was now snoring away. Doc was busy examining Addy's ankle. The party was still going on and Addy suspected it would continue to do so for a few days.

"Well it doesn't seem to be broken but you should keep off of it for a few days. You should also try to not use that arm either. It's going to take a while for them to return to normal. So seriously just relax for several days. Which am I sure you are not going to do. "

"You got that right," Addy said getting up. She was feeling her body start to twinge. It had been too long since her last drink, luckily for her there was plenty outside. "Thanks for the help."

"Just try to take it easy, if you can manage it."

Addy walked out of the office and into the party, which had somehow gotten massively larger. Swiping two tankard of something, and a bottle of something else she carefully maneuvered her way through the crowd.

"Oi Addy," Luffy called somehow appearing directly in front of her. "Come join the party."

"I will later Captain. There is someone I need to talk to first."

"Okay," he let out his trademark grin before being absorbed back into the crowd. Addy let out a chuckle before making her way through and out of the town. Sensing out Ocean she walked along the path that seemed to take her closer to it. The further she walked the quieter it got and soon all she could hear was Wind and the sounds of Ocean in the distance. Both the moon and the stars were shining brightly giving everything a silvery glow.

Eventually the path ended at the dock and Addy smiled. Merry was there gently rocking in the waves as if waiting for her crew to return.

"Merry," Addy called out. "How have…"

" _Where the hell have you been?!_ " Merry yelled. " _Do you know how worried I have been?! You were captured by fishmen and you didn't bother to tell me that you were safe!_ "

"Relax Merry." Addy climbed up on the deck and laid down placing the alcohol within arm's reach. "I will tell you everything and I won't leave until I have answered all your questions."

" _Everything_?"

"Everything."

" _Alright so why don't you start off from the beginning. Why did Nami run off?"_

Addy sighed and took a long swig. This was going to take awhile

…

Three days. The party has lasted three days and Addy loved every minute of it. An excuse to drink was always good, though she was careful not to get too drunk. Just tipsy. After all she wanted to remember what was going to happen tonight. Zoro, much to Doc's surprise was declared perfectly healthy last night. So tonight Addy was going to make her move. She did say she would, though Addy doubted Zoro would remember. He was high at the time.

Finally she spotted Zoro sitting in an alley, away from the main crowds. Sanji just left to chase after some girls leaving Zoro alone. He was resting against the building hands behind his head. Now was her chance.

"All partied out?" she asked him, holding out another tankard for him. He opened one eye and when he saw it was her he gladly took the tankard off of her.

"Three days," he said taking a sip as Addy leaned against a pole. "You would think that they would get tired."

"Eh does it really matter? Besides it's a great opportunity. No one is going to come looking for us so it will give us all the time in the world."

"Time for what?" Zoro asked. Addy was tempted to slap him. Was he really that dumb? Here she was sitting in a halter dress that ended very much above the knee hitting on him and other than the faint blush on his cheeks and the fact that it looked like he was trying to drown himself with how quickly he was drinking the tankard it seemed like he didn't notice. Well all this called for was a change of plans.

"Okay since you don't seem to understand subtly, even blatant subtly, I am just going come out and say it. I want to have sex with you."

Zoro immediately spewed out his drink and started coughing looking at Addy absolutely bewildered.

"Are you drunk?!"

"Yes but when am I not? Right now I am perfectly aware of my decisions. If you don't want too…"

"NO! I mean yes. I do want…"

"I thought so." Addy chuckled. "I just have one rule."

"There are rules?!"

"Not usually but I have one and it is my only one and it is rather simple. We do not kiss."

Zoro looked at her like a confused puppy. Addy pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. She forgot he was new to this.

"Alright look," she said. "Just because we are going to be sleeping together does not mean that we are dating. We are not a couple under any stretch of the imagination. We are just two people who can use some stress relief. Kissing implies intimacy, a deep romantic connection, which is something we don't have. The two of us can date or sleep with whoever we want. It is not exclusive."

"Can it be?" Zoro asked. Addy noticed a slight glint in his eye. Zoro had a jealousy streak. That was interesting if slightly troublesome. But there is no such thing as a perfect guy.

Addy shrugged her shoulders. "If you want it to be. I don't have a problem." The two of them stared at each other. Zoro looked nervous and kept glancing around them.

"So how do we do this?" he asked.

"You have had the sex talk right? Because I don't care how hot you are if you haven't…"

"Yes I have it's just." He took a deep breath. "This is my first time and I don't know..."

'Dear Ocean he is worse than Ace was', Addy thought. As Zoro was muttering about junk, Addy honestly tuned him out she got up and walked towards him swishing her hips. Zoro stopped halfway through a sentence and just stared at her. She placed her knees on the outside of his legs so that she was basically kneeling in front of him at eye level.

"Why don't you just let me lead?" Addy whispered into his ear before lightly nipping at it. Zoro groaned and placed his hands on her lower back pushing her slightly forward. "Merry is nice and quiet right now. No one is going to disturb us so I can show you the ropes all night long."

In a move Addy wasn't entirely expecting Zoro curled his arms around her and got up. She wrapped her legs around him and he started caring her towards Merry. Or at least where he thought Merry was.

"Uhhh Zoro?"

"Yes?"

"You're going the wrong way."

…

It was the sun hitting her eyes that woke her up. Addy blearily opened one eye and gave the sun the best evil glare she could. Groaning she turned and buried her head in Zoro's shoulder. He had his arms wrapped around her tightly, something Addy didn't mind in the slightest. After all the crow's nest wasn't the most comfortable place.

'Perhaps I should make post-sex cuddles a rule," she thought. At least for Zoro.

" _As happy as I am that you got your act together, you should get up now,_ " Merry said. " _There are a bunch of guys coming over delivering supplies._ "

"At this ungodly hour?"

" _It's early afternoon_."

Addy rolled her eyes but complied shaking Zoro's shoulder. When that didn't wake him she resorted to more drastic measures. It turns out she didn't have to as extracting herself from him was enough.

"Wha?" he asked slightly dazed.

"Get dressed," Addy said as she slipped back on her dress. She tossed his clothes at him. "Suppliers are going to come by soon."

He slipped back on his pants and stood there for a second as if taking everything in. Addy took a moment to stare at him, not that she didn't get a lot of chances but she always liked to look.

"Addy?" he said looking towards her.

"Something bothering you? Worried about your performance because you shouldn't be. I have had way worse with guys more experienced than you. With practice, we can make you A quality. Practice I am happy to provide."

He blushed as he slipped on his shirt. Even afterwards he was still shy.

"Well no it's not just that. I am more worried about something else. "

"The other's finding out? I mean I don't really care as long as they don't interrupt unless it is an emergency."

"Kids," Zoro blurted out. Addy raised an eyebrow at him. "I mean what happens if you get pregnant? We didn't exactly use…"

She couldn't help herself. Addy laughed, wiping away some tears that formed in the corner of her eyes. "Oh right, that. Well normally I would but since you are… were a virgin I figured you weren't carrying anything and since I knew I was clean I figured we would just forgo it. As for the pregnancy thing… I can't, not unless I want to and other circumstances align." Zoro gave her a blank stare and Addy sighed. "Okay look, I am just going to give you the cliff notes version. I can only get pregnant if I choose to, and it has to be a deliberate choice in my mind. I'm not human, I can't accidentally become pregnant. So we have no worries there. Let's go meet with the suppliers."

Addy jumped down from the crow's nest and Zoro quickly followed her looking a little like a lost puppy.

"Addy, how will I know that you want to…" Zoro asked.

"I will make it obvious," she responded jumping off of Merry and landing on the dock. Zoro jumped after her. "I am more concerned about you. This isn't a one way street. If you want some then all you have to do is ask."

Zoro stopped right beside her, shoulders touching. "I will keep that in mind," he said as they watched a bunch of villagers led by Luffy, Sanji and Usopp come up with boxes of supplies.

"Addy sweet!" Sanji said jumping up and down waving his arms. "Did you wait for me? Because I am here now ready and willing too…"

"That's great Sanji," Addy said. Zoro rolled his eyes with a smirk on his face. "Why don't we get everything on the ship. What do we have?" Sanji started rattling off everything as the villagers placed the supplies on the ship. Hopefully it was enough to feed Luffy for a week. They also brought on what looked like orange trees. Not a bad idea since it would be trouble if most of the crew dropped from scurvy. Addy would have to get used to the smell.

" _Orange Trees_?" Merry gasped. " _How wonderful. It will brighten everything up and in the middle of the ocean it would be good to have some green_."

Zoro also grabbed a box and started carrying up as well with Usopp helping him. Sanji went into the kitchen to organize food supplies and Addy started sorting everything else. Together it all took a relatively short amount of time. Addy looked at the supplies before them. For the most part they were set for the Grand Line. She would just like a couple more personal things.

Leaving the storage room she walked back on deck where the rest of the crew with the exception of Nami were standing with more boxes. Addy sighed. Maybe this would take longer than she realized. How much stuff did they bring?

"Are you finished loading it all?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah!" Usopp responded placing down the last box. Zoro just climbed back on deck.

"Now then," Sanji stated. "We got lots of provisions now. We're good to go."

"We were only here a few days, but this island's full of memories, huh?" Usopp said.

"Yeah!" Luffy chuckled with a big grin on his face.

Addy looked towards the dock, trying to see if Nami was coming. A large crowd had gathered to see them off, with Yosaku and Johnny standing in front.

"We owe you a lot for everything you've done," Yosaku said. "We're gonna get back to our profession of bounty-hunting again!"

"This is goodbye for now," Johnny added. "But we look forward to the day we meet again somewhere!"

"Take care!" Zoro responded smiling down at them.

"You guys, too!" both of them yelled.

"Well, we should get going, too!" Usopp said.

"Hey! Hold on! What about Nami dear?!" Sanji asked.

"Maybe she's not coming?" Zoro stated.

"W-Why not?!" Sanji yelled at him. "You! You made another pass at Nami dear again, didn't you?!"

Addy had to hold back a laugh. No it wasn't Nami Zoro was making a pass at.

Zoro seemed to have the same line of thinking. "Why would I do that?" he asked though instead of looking at Sanji who was holding his fists up, he was staring at Addy. She winked at him. Maybe they should keep it a secret. It could be fun.

"No, you definitely did!" Sanji yelled.

"Oh, yeah. She achieved her goal," Usopp remarked.

"You can't stand that me and Nami dear are all lovey-dovey!"

"Are you an idiot?" Zoro asked.

"What did you call me?!" Sanji yelled.

"And she has no reason to be a pirate," Usopp continued. "So she might be happier here."

"What about my happiness?!" Sanji yelled turning his attention onto Usopp. He swiftly turned to Luffy. "If Nami dear isn't on the boat, then 49.26% of my reason for being on the boat is gone!"

"I wonder what other reasons he has for being here?" Addy wondered.

" _Do you really have to ask?_ " Merry said.

"Hey, you!" Luffy said pointing his finger towards Sanji. "I couldn't find the raw ham melon anywhere!"

"What does that have to do with anything?!" Sanji shouted.

Addy stepped in before Sanji would have a heart attack. "Nami is going to be here any second," she said. Everyone turned towards her. "After all she has her own dream to complete. Speaking of which…"

At that moment Nami appeared on the shore behind the crowd. Sanji ran up to the railing in excitement. He really liked her.

"Nami dear!" he shouted.

"Get the ship moving!" she yelled. She started running towards them.

"Captain?" Addy asked. He gave a nod and she ran up towards the steering pole. "Merry you with me?"

" _Every league of the way."_

As soon as Addy's hands connected to the pole it was almost like she became a part of the ship. It was good to be back home. Addy heard the clank of the anchor as it hit the deck and the sails unfurling and turning into the wind. She started turning away from the shore and heading back towards open Ocean. Nami better hurry up.

" _And she is on board_ ," Merry told her. Addy grinned. The family was finally reunited. " _It seems like she has stolen everyone's wallets."_

"Seems like something she would do." Addy continued to guide the ship as they left the shore. They were off to a new island, to a new adventure. Who knows what was going to happen to them next. Hopefully something quiet. She could use a few easy days.

* * *

hellspam-That is going to have to wait until after the next arc. Don't worry though it is all in the works.

Jag- Well here it is. Hope you enjoy :).

PsychopathOnADiet-I like that idea. Zoro and Addy would totally bet on all sorts of things.

PurpleKetloom- Glad to hear it. The next chapter is here and waiting for your approval.


	44. Hole in the Sea Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _Ah this. This was fun. It is based on the first One Piece tv special. If you haven't seen it, go watch it. Actually just go watch all the One Piece tv specials. They are all amazing in a bizarre way particularly the early ones. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

When Addy said she wanted a few easy days she certainly got it, though she wasn't sure she wanted it this easy. Nothing was happening. Zoro was taking a nap, Usopp inventing something, Sanji and her were just staring at Ocean by the figurehead and Nami was inside drawing one of her maps. And Luffy was sitting in the back of the ship… being Luffy. Which meant annoying Nami.

She slammed the door open and marched towards Luffy who was zipping his pants back up after pissing in Ocean. Her fists were clenched and shoulder tense. It had only been two days since they left her village and already things were going back to normal.

"Not again!" she stated towards Luffy. "I told you to stop pissing in the water while you're fishing! We won't be able to eat the fish!"

"They'll still taste good," Luffy retorted.

"That's all very well for you, but what about us?! Honestly!"

"You know Nami, I can easily go get fish," Addy said turning towards her.

"Not unless it's an emergency. You are really the only one who can sail Merry properly. If you go missing we are not going anywhere," Nami said.

"You sailed her just fine."

"I just feel more comfortable with you on the ship. And not in the ocean where you go around attacking random people."

"I was only gone for a few hours and they were Marines, not random people. I did bring fish back."

Nami rolled her eyes and huffed. "You are staying on the ship."

" _Yeah,"_ Merry stated. " _I love them but they seriously have no idea how to sail."_

"Hey, how long are you going to take anyhow?" Usopp asked.

"Hm, I don't get it…" Luffy muttered. "I used lots of bait. Do I need more or something?"

Nami face went blue as she looked at Luffy with shock. "No way! You've been using those sponges?! L-Luffy, don't tell me you've been fishing with those all morning?"

"Yep! They look like hamburgers. Look pretty tasty, don't they?"

"You're the only person in the entire world who would think they look tasty! Addy I changed my mind. You are going fishing."

Addy walked over and looked at the basket filled with brown sponges. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why didn't you say anything?" she asked.

" _Don't blame me, I don't know anything about fishing_."

Suddenly the line started being tugged much to Addy's surprise. So much so that it was pulling the entire ship backwards. Addy managed to keep her footing but everyone else except Luffy was taken by surprise, excluding Zoro who was asleep.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey!" Luffy shouted pulling the rope so that a massive coil of it was forming on the deck. Just how much did he use? "I caught something! It's a big one! Pull, pull, pull, pull, pull!"

It was then that Addy noticed what they were being pulled into. A massive wall of fog. Soon the ship was being pulled directly into it.

" _Um, Addy you are seeing this right_?" Merry asked.

"Yeah," Addy said as they plunged into the fog the rope pile beside her growing even larger.

Nami had gotten up from lying on the deck, the pulling knocking her off her feet, "Hey," she said leaning on the railing with a hand in her hair. "What were you exactly planning to catch?"

"Something to fill me up," Luffy responded.

"You're such an idiot."

The rope grew taunt and Addy saw what Luffy had caught. A chest chained to a rock…which they were head directly towards. She jumped back as Merry smashed into the rock. Nami fell over the railing though luckily managed to grab onto the rope while Luffy just disappeared.

" _OUCH!_ " Merry yelled. " _I think you destroyed the rudder._ "

"I am pretty sure we did," Addy said looking over the edge of the railing and helping Nami up. She leaned down and grabbed onto Nami's hand pulling her back up onto the ship.

"Everyone alright?" Sanji called out coming to the back.

Usopp came charging as well. "Hey, what's going on?" he asked.

"Well Captain is never allowed to fish again by himself," Addy responded. "Also the rudder has been destroyed."

"WHAT!"

"W-What's this?" Luffy asked. They all turned towards him. He was holding the chest that was clearly chained to the rock. "Can I eat it?" He attempted to bite into it. There was a loud clank as teeth hit metal. Sometimes Addy worried about her captain. This was one of those times. Particularly as he tried it multiple times. She hoped his teeth were made out of rubber as well.

"It's terrible," he finally said sticking his tongue out. "Chuck it." He promptly threw the chest into the water freaking out Nami who dived in to go get it.

"Nami dear," Sanji called out reaching out for her.

" _Shouldn't you go get her?"_ Merry asked.

She came back up holding the chest and glaring at Luffy. "Don't throw it away!" she yelled. "What if there's treasure or something inside?!"

"But it didn't taste good," Luffy replied.

"Whether you can eat it or not has NOTHING to do with it!"

Usopp was nodding while Sanji was trying to light a cigarette. She could hear the clicking sound of the lighter.

"If I can't eat it, I don't want it," Luffy stated. "And that's final."

"ADDY!" Nami yelled. "Talk some sense into him."

Addy sighed and jumped down onto the rock wincing slightly as it jarred her ankle. It had only just recovered. "Captain," she said as Nami was trying to break into it with a dagger. It was then that she noticed the large bump on his head. Maybe that was the problem. Perhaps he had a concussion. Could he get a concussion? "What is inside the chest could be treasure. Treasure that we can use to buy meat."

"Ah! I see now," Luffy said nodding. "Why didn't you say so before?"

"I didn't think we would need to."

Addy heard the clank and the jangling of the lock as Nami it undone. "That did it," she said throwing the dagger in the water. The chest creaked as Nami lifted up the lid. A look of disappointment came across her face.

"Nami," Usopp called out. "What's in it? Hurry, lemme see it, too!"

"Alright, alright, here you go!" she called back throwing the object.

"Hooray! Alright!" He caught it with both hands before freaking out.

" _It's a painted skull_ ," Merry said. " _Neat_."

"I-It… It's a s-skull!"

"Aw, so I can't eat it after all," Luffy grumbled.

Unexpectedly the chain on the chest tightened and Nami started being pulled. Addy dove in the water and swam up to her, interlocking their arms. It would be bad if their navigator just floated off.

"A current flowing," Nami said. "And I didn't really notice before, but what is that sound?"

"You mean the hole," Addy asked.

"Yes the hole… HOLE?!"

"Plunge into the Ocean's navel; therein lies the secret to making your dreams come true… Captain Joke," Usopp stated. "The Ocean's Navel… Plunge into it?"

"Yeah it's a hole," Addy repeated. "Goes pretty deep down from what I can tell."

"How can there be a hole in the middle of the ocean?!" Nami asked.

"I don't think you would believe me if I told you."

"Therein lies the secret to making your dreams come true… Captain Joke," Usopp repeated.

"What do you think could be down there?" Nami asked.

Addy shrugged her shoulders, "I don't know. Most likely treasure, perhaps one of the magic fountains, though considering how old the legend is it could be anything."

"This is one of your it's a really long story deals that you won't actually talk about right?"

"You got it."

"But there is definitely something down there?"

"Beyond a doubt."

"Well that settles it," Nami slammed her fist in her hand. "We are going down there!"

"WOOOOOOOOOOO Adventure," Luffy called out jumping back onto Merry. "Let's go! Let's go! Let's go!" Addy swam back to Merry with Nami in tow. Sanji helped the two of them up, gushing as he did so.

"Hold on," Usopp stammered. "I think I am coming down with can't-go-into-deep-dark-ocean-hole disease."

"Not to put a damper on your plans," Addy said. "But how do you plan on getting down there?"

"We have a diving bell. Sanji can you be a dear and go set that up for me," Nami asked.

"At once my love," Sanji yelled running off faster than Addy could blink.

" _Is this considered taking advantage of someone_?" Merry asked.

"If it was anyone but Sanji I would say yes," Addy said. Nami was arguing with Usopp and Luffy. Trying to convince Usopp to go but for Luffy to stay.

"Addy!" Nami said. "Talk some sense into Luffy."

Addy sighed. Was this really her role now? "Captain," she said. "You can't go because you can't swim. If something happens then you would be in trouble."

"But you will be there," Luffy pointed out. "You would save me if something went wrong."

Addy heart swelled at the faith her captain put into her. "Yes, but we still need someone to protect Merry in case someone comes along."

" _I would appreciate that,"_ Merry said. _"Particularly since I can't move right now because some people just had to get my rudder broken."_

"And only Zoro and you are strong enough to do that," Addy finished. "Besides we also need someone to actually lower the diving bell down."

Luffy looked at her, than back towards the diving bell, than back towards her. "If it's for Merry," he said. "Then I will stay."

It didn't take long to have the diving bell all set up with Nami, Sanji, and Usopp all crammed in. Addy was swimming around it making sure that everything was alright. She knocked on the window and saw Nami give her a thumbs up, so it seemed like everything was going fine so far.

The diving bell was slowly being lowered. So far everything was going good. Hopefully it will stay that way. She was swimming right beside the diving bell next to what looked like a giant curtain of water. It didn't take much for Addy to push the diving bell through it. She clung to the rope as the swung through. As soon as they passed through the curtain they entered a corridor of breathable air. Right below them stood a black mountain and what looked like a village at its base. It was like an underwater island resting on a layer of Ocean, protected by the corridor of air. Even sunlight was making its way down so they weren't that far from the surface.

Unfortunately that changed as the diving bell started plummeting rapidly. Addy clung to the rope as they fell watching as they rapidly approached the ground. This was going to hurt. Through sheer dumb luck they stopped right before they hit the ground though it still sent Addy flying. She managed to flip and land on her feet not far away from the diving bell.

"I should have stayed up there," Addy murmured looking around. They were surrounded by shipwrecks, probably lured here for the same reason they came down. It gave the area a creepy vibe that sent shivers down Addy spine. She stepped in front of the window of the diving bell to see if everyone was alright. They seemed to be alive if not a little freaked out. Unexpectedly a bat flew right in front of the window and Addy causing her to take a step back. Usopp kicked out the bottom and peered out only to immediately retreat as the bat started cackling. Addy immediately put her hand on her whip ready to strike at it if necessary. It was then that she noticed the gold earning on the bat's ear and she unfurled her whip. Zoan users were either really easy or absolute nightmares. There was no in between.

The bat started coughing and the three in the barrel ducked their heads out to look at it.

"This is the pirate graveyard," the bat said. "Looks like you'll die seeking the treasure as well."

"T-The bat!" Usopp stammered.

"Is talking!" Nami finished.

The bat started laughing again before flying around the diving bell.

"Relax," Addy said. "It's a Devil Fruit user."

"Devil Fruits can turn people into animals?!" Nami asked.

"Look I promise I will explain later when we got the whole crew together."

"Believe what you want," the bat cackled. Addy was already getting sick of him "I am the bat that guides those brave souls to the treasure of the Ocean's navel. But first off, you guys should probably think about moving."

Addy heard crashing and turned watching as the masts of wrecked ships came slamming down onto the ground. Glass smashed and what appeared to be a giant green octopus with hair rose up. Suckers covered its entire body. Nami and Usopp who came out to glance at it and immediately rushed back into the diving bell.

Addy stood in between the diving bell and the monster wishing that Sanji had come out instead. Cracking her whip in the air she prepared to fight it. She jumped onto the top of the diving bell as it got closer, its tentacles waving all around them. Addy looked straight into its red eyes. For some reason it was not going for them but rather waiting to see what they did. It wrapped one tentacle around the diving bell, probably measuring to see how they would react. The answer was not well.

Usopp freaked out and started running away from the monster. Unfortunately he forgot that the diving bell was still attached by a rope and ended up flinging them into the air creating a sort of pendulum sending them straight back towards the monster. It now firmly wrapped one of its tentacles around the diving bell and started squeezing.

"Oi knock it off," Addy said lashing her whip at the tentacle. It just bounced off of it. Well they were screwed. Sanji then decided to poke his head out from the bottom climbing out of the diving bell and landing firmly on the ground. Addy jumped and landed right next to him.

"Got any ideas?" Addy asked. "Because this is useless," she held up her whip.

"Of course I do Addy sweet," Sanji said. He then jumped on the tentacles before leaping up onto its head and used that as a trampoline to launch himself even higher.

"This is for Nami dear and Addy sweet," he called out. "HOW DARE YOU MAKE NAMI DEAR CRY!" He slammed his leg right into the octopus's head creating a massive dent. Addy heard gurgling noises and its tentacles were flaying about before they stopped moving altogether.

"Heh," Sanji stated lighting a cigarette. "Because of Luffy we missed breakfast, Addy sweet do you think you can eat this?"

Addy poked it with her foot. "Probably, I mean it is an octopus."

"Then how about some octopus steak for lunch?"

However the octopus wasn't actually dead as it wrapped a tentacle around Sanji and started squeezing. Now they were really screwed. Time for plan B.

* * *

PuddyKatz-They really are, which was the goal.

PsychopathOnADiet- It did take awhile didn't it. Fuzzies are important. I was actually going to give that role to Robin when she finally joins the crew. Nami will have a sort of different role as you will see.

hellspam- Well here it is. Hope you enjoy.

CalicoKitty402- You and me both. I am currently living in denial.

Jag- It would have been painful to write as well. Also I think that a lot of people image they first time differently then I do so it allows for more of that openness. Watching these two and their relationship is going to be a fun ride.


	45. Hole in the Sea Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _So we are continuing in the tv special. It should be all wrapped up in the next chapter. If you haven't seen the tv special I would recommend at least reading the wiki article on it. Due to the format of the fic I don't actually cover everything in the special and it is well worth knowing about. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy leapt up onto one of its tentacles. For some reason it was leaving her alone. Clicking the button on her whip handle she brought out the blade and stabbed one of the suckers clean through. That got its attention though not in the way she wanted as it wrapped a tentacle around her as well.

"Let me go!" she shouted in her native tongue. If it was an octopus it should be able to understand. Surprisingly it lowered her to the ground instantly, softly putting her down. Okay that was odd.

"Put the other's down as well," she shouted. The octopus did so as well than just stood there waiting further orders.

"Ah Addy sweet is so lovely wonderful when she tames animals," Sanji gushed. He did not look good, his body was trembling and it looked like he was just keeping himself standing.

"Don't look at me. I have no idea why it's obeying commands," Addy retorted before calling out sit in her language. The octopus did as it was told and sat down as best it could considering it was an octopus. "Now stay there."

Suddenly she heard very loud high pitched screaming that could only come from one source.

"Merry?" she asked.

" _HELP ME_!" Merry cried out before slamming straight into the octopus's head. Addy saw the light fade from its eyes. It was truly dead now. The bat was also freaking out as well for some reason.

"What happened?" Usopp asked peeking out from the diving bell.

"Merry killed the octopus," Addy said. "Impressive first kill."

" _I NEVER WANT TO DO THAT AGAIN_ ," Merry yelled. " _I AM NOT MEANT FOR FLYING! HEIGHTS SCARE ME_!"

"Merry I am sure that you will never have to fly again," Addy said.

"Haha see that?" Usopp said. "Everything went just as I planned!" Addy rolled her eyes as Usopp jumped onto Merry.

"What happened?" Nami asked.

"Merry killed the octopus," Addy repeated.

"I know that. The question is how. What were they doing up there?"

Addy paused. "That is actually a very good question."

" _I don't know_ ," Merry stated. " _Luffy broke the machine and then there were flying bottles and next thing I know I was falling down here_."

The bat came flying back around again, cackling. Addy really wanted to kill the stupid thing.

"And now, onward to the treasure!" it called out.

"To…To the treasure?!" Nami exclaimed.

"Nami?" Addy asked. "Should we be really following him?"

"He's right!" she responded. "We don't have time to be sitting around here!"

"Nami dear," Sanji stated. "Why don't you guys go on ahead? I'm going to rest here for a bit."

Seems like the octopus hurt him more than they thought. "Wait, you weren't?" Nami asked. "Are you okay?"

"Of course, nothing to worry about."

"Hey, I'm guiding here!" the bat yelled.

"Nami, Addy!" Usopp called jumping back down from Merry. "Luffy and Zoro aren't there. Let's just get out of here for now."

Nami nodded. "Wait here Sanji kun. No matter what."

"Sure thing." He raised his arm up and doubled over in pain. "Man I can't move a muscle."

Nami grabbed Addy and started dragging her off as well. "Wait why am I coming along?" Addy asked. "I should be by Merry and Sanji isn't doing too well."

"Because you are the only one who can deal with the monsters if there are more of them," Nami responded. Addy sighed but went along with them. They should probably look for Captain and Zoro anyway. Once they found them then they can deal with whatever monsters they come across.

The bat was still laughing and not for the first time Addy imagined what it would sound like as it died. Most likely like music to her ears.

'Where the hell are we going?' Addy thought. It seems like they had been walking forever and now they were hiking up the mountain. Why the hell were they doing this? Not to mention this place made her feel weird. As in really, really weird. She chocked it up to being in the middle of Ocean at first but it wasn't that. She normally got stronger from being in or near water but this… this was bad. It felt like power was surging through her veins, like she was unstoppable. That she could doing anything. Her more primal instincts were raging, waiting to be unleashed and it took all of Addy's focus to keep them down. Whatever this place was she had to get out of here soon, before she went berserk. And the stupid bat was still laughing. She had already downed what she was carrying with her. She really needed to bring more alcohol.

"Dear Ocean!" she shouted at the bat. "SHUT THE HELL UP OR I WILL RIP OUT YOUR INNARDS AND FEED THEM TO YOU!" The bat stared at her for a moment before shutting its mouth. Nami and Usopp glanced at each other.

"Um Addy are you okay?" Usopp asked.

"Oh yeah I fine," Addy snarked. "Absolutely nothing wrong." They stopped by a stream that seemed to be flowing down the mountain but even that did nothing to sooth Addy. The problem only seemed to be getting worse. It felt like her blood was boiling and she swore she could hear Usopp and Nami's hearts beating.

"What'cha worried for? The treasure's right at the top of this mountain!" the bat said.

"WHAT DID I JUST SAY!" Addy yelled again.

"Okay calm down," Usopp said. "We are almost there, this is going to be easy."

"When is anything ever easy?" Addy replied though Usopp was already running up the stairs.

"Well actually, it's not gonna be that easy," the bat said.

"What?!" Usopp stated.

"And you only say this now?!" Addy asked.

"To get to the treasure, you need to defeat two more monsters like the last one," the bat replied.

"You HAVE to be kidding!" Usopp yelled. He swiveled towards Addy. "You can take care of them right? Order them off a cliff or something?"

"I will rip them limb from limb," Addy responded.

"Alright…. Not the answer I was expecting but that will work."

Nami stalked up to the bat and stretched out its cheeks. "And why didn't you mention this before?" she asked.

"Because you never asked," the bat stated.

"We're so close to the treasure…" Nami sighed. "What's that Luffy doing now when we need him?"

"Who cares?!" Addy growled. "The sooner we get the treasure the sooner we can get out of here." She started up the stairs and Usopp and Nami followed her though they looked slightly nervous. Addy briefly wondered if they were nervous about the monsters or her finally snapping. They shouldn't worry about her though. Even if she snapped she would never hurt her nakama. Just anyone else that came close to them. Starting with the bat. Eventually they made their way to the top of the mountain.

"We're here…" Nami panted. Usopp looked like he was about to collapse from exhaustion. Addy glared. Right in front of them was several openings leading most likely into a cave system. She hated caves.

"Congratulations on making it here," the bat said. "This is it! The cave where the treasure lies!" The three of them walked into the nearest opening. On the floor was what looked like a map to the caves. It appeared to be a labyrinth. Usopp kneeled down to look at it and came to the same conclusion.

"Right on!" the bat said.

"So that means the treasure is right here in the center, right?" Nami asked.

"Where else would it be?!" Addy snapped. "Also this is a labyrinth, not a maze and all we need to do is follow the right hand wall all the way through."

"You know a lot about mazes?" Usopp asked. She glared at him and he gulped. "I mean labyrinths?"

"Let's just say that my family likes building them," Addy responded.

"Then that's easy!" Usopp looked rather relaxed about the entire situation. "If we run into a wall all we have to do is turn back. We're bound to find the right path sooner or later."

Suddenly there was a rumbling sound in the distance.

"That is IF you can turn back," the bat laughed.

"What?" Usopp stated.

"Ssh," Nami said trying to figure what the rumbling sound was. All that Addy knew was that it was giving her a blinding headache which was not helping her mood any. "Usopp, Addy, something's coming." The rumbling got closer and Addy could feel it shaking the entire area. As it turned the corner Nami and Usopp turned green and started shrieking. All Addy could do was stare. How in the bloody world did a sea urchin get up here? That was the only thing the big black ball of spikes could be. It was coming straight for them.

"R-r-run for it!" Usopp yelled going deeper into the caves pulling her and Nam causing all three of them to fall on the ground face planting in the cave dirt. The urchin just blew past them, going down the other tunnel.

"Ah, saved!" Usopp sighed. Addy jumped up and brushed herself off.

"Tell me, Usopp. Why didn't you…"Nami said angrily "jump outside the cave?" The rumbling came back and the urchin stood in between them and the door trapping them inside. This was not her day.

"Well…" Usopp stammered shaking. "I mean…" The sea urchin opened its purple eyes and glared at them. "NEVERMIND RUN FOR IT!" Usopp grabbed both of them again and started running as fast as he could down the tunnel. The urchin was right on their heels.

"ADDY!" Usopp screamed. "Try talking to it!"

"OI!" Addy yelled at it. "Go away!" The urchin paused for a second before continuing to move forward.

"I though you could control these things?!" Usopp cried.

"I never said that! You just assumed! Maybe the octopus had head trauma from Sanji and that is why it listened. I don't know!" They continued running down the tunnels. All the walls looked the same. Addy swore she could hear the bat laughing at them. She hoped Luffy and Zoro were having just as much of a miserable time as they were. Freaking hole in Ocean. They should have just turned around and gone on their merry way. But no they just had to go explore and look for treasure. They could be doing anything else right now. But instead they were being chased through a labyrinth by a ginormous sea urchin. This was not her freakin day.

Usopp, and her were running through the tunnels as rapidly as they could. Even with Usopp carrying Nami he was amazingly fast.

"W-Why the hell… D-Do I have to c-carry you?" he panted.

"Quit talking! Just keep running!" Nami yelled. "LEFT! To the left!"

"I heard you!"

He started repeating left to himself. Addy rolled her eyes. As they turned down the passage way she heard Luffy yelling right before running right smack into him. The four of them rolled right down the right passageway instead.

"What the hell's wrong with you?!" Nami yelled at Usopp.

"It's not MY fault," he retorted.

"What are you guys fighting for?" Luffy asked as a kid came running up from behind him. Addy growled. She thought it couldn't get any worse but now there was a kid involved. Flippidy freaking doodah.

"THIS IS YOUR FAULT!" all three of them yelled at Luffy. The urchin was soon blocking there pathway out and they were running for their lives again.

"It's chasing us," Luffy shouted.

"WE KNOW!" Addy yelled. "Stop making stupid comments and punch it or something!"

"WHAT IS THAT?" Usopp screamed. They came straight into a dead end. Addy did not believe this. She was going to die in a cave via sea urchin. Riley was going to laugh at her forever. Usopp and Nami were clawing and pounding at it in desperation. "No, how can it be a dead end!?"

"I TOLD YOU TO GO OUTSIDE," Nami yelled pulling at Usopp's face. It was then that Addy noticed all the skeletons around them. Well at least they wouldn't be alone as their bodies slowly decomposed.

"Wow, how did all these guys die?" Luffy asked.

"Gee I don't know Captain," Addy snarked. "Maybe it was THE GIANT SEA URCHIN THAT HAS BEEN CHASING US!"

"Giant sea urchin?" Luffy asked.

"Did you not notice?!"

It rounded the corner and Addy saw that its spikes were glowing red. This was brilliant.

"Oh, a giant sea urchin!" Luffy stated. "You're the one who did all this?!" He started running up to it. "Gomu Gomu no Balloon!" He puffed himself up blocking the sea urchin from reaching them. Fantastic. Now they had a few minutes to live instead of a few seconds. The urchin ran straight into Luffy. Addy could see the spikes stretching out his skin.

"While I've got it! RUN!" he yelled.

"Luffy!" Usopp shouted back.

"Good goin'!" Nami yelled joyfully.

"Captain," Addy remarked.

The three of them ran underneath the sea urchin making their way past. Luckily for them the boy was too stupid to follow them. That was a relief. The urchin spikes were covered in the bones of the people it had killed. Surprisingly Addy found that she did not care instead it gave her some sort of sick pleasure. How much blood must have been split. It would have been glorious. Addy shook her head and squashed the thoughts. She couldn't let them get to her. She promised herself that after the incident she would never let herself fall to them again.

Eventually, after a few more wrong turns, they made their way to the center. A fountain stood, the water glowing bright red. Writing covered the walls in a script that Addy had not seen in a while. It was that of her kind.

"Addy, Usopp!" Nami said. "We made it!"

"This place, could it be?" Usopp stated.

Addy ignored them and started reading. Perhaps she could figure out what the hell was going on with her.

 _If you are reading this then I have either failed or succeed. My name is Marika of Kailani. I built this place in order to protect my crew from the war that is currently raging. I have left to go fight and most likely die considering the opponent we are facing. My Soul Adarsh will stay in my stead. If you are one of my kin, Pearl has been left in the hands of my daughter Delphi of Kailani. If you are not then please inform one of them if there are any of us left. Before you is the fountain of wishes, one of my greatest accomplishments. Use it if you want just leave my people in peace. Any ill intentions will be harshly punished. My beasts will see to that._

"Marika of Kailani," Addy murmured. "Otherwise known at the Beast Master. That explains a lot. Maybe that is why the octopus listened. Considering I am your great, great, great granddaughter I might have stirred up some memory."

"What are you saying Addy?" Usopp asked.

"Nothing important," she replied walking up towards them. They were standing by the stairs looking at her eager to go for the treasure. "Let's go."

* * *

hellspam- Glad to hear it. One of the goals of the fanfic is to introduce people to the tv specials, ovas and movies that are often ignored as well as the filler arcs that a lot of people skip. So I am happy to see that is succeeding.

PurpleKetloom- Hope you approve of this one :).

PsychopathOnADiet- Don't worry about it though I would recommend at least reading the wiki article. That should clear some things up. I cannot wait to get Robin into the story but that unfortunately is going to wait awhile.

Jag- Trust me the ride is going to be long, occasionally painful and hopefully very much worth it.


	46. Hole in the Sea Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _So this concludes Hole in the Sea. After this we are moving directly into Sidetracked next week. We are getting closer to the Grand Line. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"H-Hey I told you to hold it!" the bat yelled and flew in front of them blocking their way to the stair case.

"What's all the commotion?" Nami asked clearly as ticked off at the bat as Addy was.

"To get ahold of the treasure you have to beat the last monster! You can't just run up a grab it!"

"Yeah, you're lying," Addy stated flicking her whip towards the bat, unfortunately it flew off before it could hit him. If only she killed it when she had the chance.

"The treasure's right here in front of us," Nami pointed out. "Is there some sort of rule that we can't take it first?"

The bat was starting to panic, trying to come up with some excuse. Suddenly the rumbling sound came back and the boy came running into the room screaming. Just when Addy thought they lost him. Usopp and Nami started screaming as the boy tripped and fell flat on his face.

"W-who are you?" Nami and Usopp asked.

"Do we really care?" Addy added in rolling her eyes at the kid. The sea urchin came bursting into the room with all its spikes broken off with the exception on one. Luffy, who was standing on top of it, soon snapped that off as well.

"I BROKE 'EM ALL!" he yelled out before collapsing on top of it from sheer exhaustion. Luffy was really something. Addy would hate to be on his bad side.

"L-Luffy?" Usopp asked. He was fast asleep on top of the now dead sea urchin, the light fading from the sea urchin's eyes as well. The bat was laughing manically and Addy only then noticed the skeleton lying on the floor as well as the other skeletons scattered around the room. So, other people had also made it this far. Though clearly something killed them. Hopefully they wouldn't meet the same fate.

"JOKE!" the boy yelled. He was right. This entire situation was a joke. The bat disappeared into a bunch of red sparkles, hopefully never to be seen or and especially never heard from again.

"Usopp, Addy, what are you waiting for!" Nami shouted. "Let's grab the treasure!" The three of them ran up the stairs getting closer to the fountain when there was an explosion behind them causing them to fall on the stairs.

"It's like my gunpowder star," Usopp muttered.

"Oh for the love of everything," Addy growled staring at what shot them. A skeleton was standing up holding an enormous pistol in his hand. That did it. Addy was done. Flipping herself back on her feet she drew out her whip and cracked it in the air. Fun time was over. Kill time started now.

Addy watched as the painted skull Usopp dropped rolled down the stairs and the skeleton picked it up and placed it where it should be. Its eyes started glowing and it made the same stupid laugh the bat did. Okay so he wasn't a Devil Fruit user, just cursed. Doesn't mean he isn't going to die. Just meant that it was slightly easier to kill him. Even better.

"Behold! My body, my arms, my legs, they're all back!" the skeleton cried out. "These bastards had it all separated." He pointed the gun towards the deceased sea urchin. "My body!" He shot at it causing a ginormous flash of light that bathed the room in a yellow light. "I never expected you guys to get them all. But thanks to you, now I'm revived!" He walked up the stairs towards them. It wouldn't be long before he would be range. Addy tightened her grip prepared to strike.

"Hey now. Why are you guys lying there all pathetic-like?" For some reason Addy suspected that he wasn't talking to them. "Oh yeah, you all betrayed me that day, huh?" So they were his crew. It seems like there was no lost love between them since he smashed the skull underneath his foot. "That's right! Every single one of you!" He started cackling again. "And what a fitting end! You all ended up stone dead! But of course, I'm different. For these 10 years, I have endured. For this day, that entire time."

"Will you shut up!" Addy yelled holding up her arm to block his path up. "No one cares about your tragic back story! I certainly don't and right now all your whining is giving me a colossal headache! Besides are you really that deluded to think that I am just going to let you walk up there and make a wish! Those ten years must have really driven you insane! Who spends ten years as a bat anyway?! Also, why didn't you get the treasure in bat form?! It is literally a wishing fountain! It can grant you any wish you want but instead you decide to spend ten years as a bat?! What is wrong with you?!"

"Stand aside…"

She brought up the handle of her whip to his skull. "I'm not done yet! Say anything more and your head will be dust! I would love to see how you would make a wish when you can't speak!"

"JOKE!" the boy yelled again. Addy winched. Why was the kid even here? Also why was he yelling joke, unless that was the skeleton name. In which case, he must have had really terrible parents. His scream also managed to wake up Luffy who was groggily opening his eyes.

Joke turned around and pointed his gun towards the kid. He could shoot him for all Addy cared which he attempted to do so. Apparently he couldn't hit a moving target as the boy just dodged around the bullets until he eventually tripped.

"Lucky kid," Joke said. He reloaded his gun. Maybe this time he will actually hit something. "But I have plenty more rounds left."

"At the rate you're going to have to use all of them if you want to even mildly wound the kid," Addy stated watching as the kid ran up beside Joke. "And this is why if you're smart you don't use guns." Addy sidestepped down as the boy launched his attack on Joke with a sword in hand. Maybe they will get lucky and kill each other. Unfortunately Joke easily batted the kid away towards the fountain.

"Hamu!" Luffy yelled out. Well at least the kid had a name now.

"To think that there are still people in that village with the courage to face me," Joke laughed. "Come to think of it, I think I've seen you before."

"No!" Addy said "Just no! I don't care about the history between you two. I don't care if you did something awful, like killed his mom in front of him or something. I just want you to move out of the way so that we can get our wish and go back to the surface! Right now I feel like I am about to break out into a murderous rampage and kill everyone so just hurry the hell up and fight or whatever you planned to do!"

"My mother fought alone for the sake of the town," Hamu said picking up the sword he dropped. "When she set out alone, she knew it'd be useless. That's why I've been looking for nakama, to fight by my side! So that I could protect the town, like my mother did!"

"Nakama!" Joke laughed. "And where are these nakama now? Take a look. Only the dead surround us. The only ones alive are you, me, and the very angry lady."

"And getting angrier!" Addy responded.

"Let's finish this," Joke said holding up his gun to the boy. "The one left standing. Will it be me? Or will it be you?"

"Mother, lend me your courage!" Hamu stated. "Mother, your courage!" The light behind him turned blue, glowing brightly and Addy face palmed. They had just wasted their entire time. Incredible. Now it will be awhile before a wish could be made again. It was impressive though. The spirit of the mother appeared behind the boy.

"ADDY!" Luffy called out. "HOLD HIM DOWN!"

"As you wish my Captain," Addy stated wrapping her whip around Joke. He wasn't going anywhere. Nami and Usopp also grabbed onto Joke's legs also. Luffy was standing on top of the sea urchin, watching his crew in action. Joke was freaking out as Hamu launched his attack. He hit Joke directly in the skull.

"To have nakama like this," Joke muttered. "I would've liked to have some too…" He shattered, bone fragments falling to the floor. Addy recoiled her whip and placed it back on her belt before walking up to the fountain, now glowing light blue. She placed her hands in the water and felt its cooling touch. It brought a sense of relief though she still felt her heart beat go a million miles an hour and the feelings of blood lust try to push to the surface.

"Addy where's the treasure?" Nami asked.

"Gone," Addy said. "Won't reappear for a while." She took her hands out of the water.

"WHAT?!" She turned towards the boy. "It was you, wasn't it?!" She was shaking him back and forth. "What did you do with it?! It was shining so brightly just a second ago!"

"That's how it works," Addy said. "You make a wish and then you wait for it to reform. Now can we go? I wasn't actually joking about the murderous rampage."

"Right off to Merry," Usopp said hurrying back along into the maze. Addy swiftly followed him, Luffy behind her and Nami who was still grumbling at the kid. They only got lost four times going through the labyrinth which Addy wasn't sure how that was possible but given that they were the Straw Hats Addy was surprised they didn't get lost more. Thankfully it took far less time going down the mountain than it did going up. Or maybe it was because Joke was no longer around annoying Addy every second. It wasn't long before they made it back to Merry where Zoro and Sanji were waiting for them along with some girl blue haired girl who Sanji was fawning over. No shock there.

"Hana," she cried out running towards the boy embracing him in a hug.

"I did it Meorie. I saved the village," the boy started crying up again and Addy rolled her eyes walking up to Zoro while Sanji was busy gushing over Nami.

"You look like hell," Zoro pointed out.

"I feel like it," Addy responded before grabbing his shirt collar and pulling him towards her so that she could whisper in his ear. "Tonight while everyone is asleep I am going to ride you so hard that you forget your name. Understand?" Zoro went beet red and nodded. Addy gave him a smile. She let go and started heading towards Merry.

"I still can't believe that you defeated God's beasts," Meorie said. Addy stopped in her tracks.

"What did you say?" she asked calmly turning towards the girl.

"You defeated God's beasts. I didn't think that was possible."

"Tell me," Addy said stepping closer until she was right in the girl's face. "Do you worship the person who created the fountain and placed your people here?"

"Of course the great God gives us everything we could desire and blessed us with safety."

Addy took a deep breath and calmed her raging thoughts that were telling her to rip this girl to shreds. "YOU STUPID HUMANS!" she yelled. "DEAR OCEAN, NO WONDER I FEEL THIS WAY! IT IS BECAUSE OF YOU AND YOUR VILLAGES ABSOLUTLE LUNACY! AND YOU COULDN"T EVEN GET THE GENDER RIGHT! WE ARE NOT GODDESSES! WE DO NOT WANT OR NEED YOUR WORSHIP! WE ARE JUST…"

"Okay that's enough," Nami said clamping a hand over Addy's mouth. She growled and Nami whacked her in the back of the head. "Go take a nap or something before you really do kill everyone." She removed her hand from Addy mouth. Addy glared at her before stalking back towards Merry.

" _Rough day_?" Merry asked.

"You have no idea _,"_ Addy replied lying down on the deck. Zoro followed her up and lied down next to her. She moved herself slightly so that she was using him as a pillow. "I am going to nap now. Wake me up when they figure out how to get us out of here."

"No problem," Zoro replied at the same time Merry did. Addy closed her eyes and soon felt a hand play with her hair. She will allow Zoro to indulge himself. Besides, it felt rather nice. And after everything that had happened today she could do with something nice.

…

" _Addy, wake up. We're ready,"_ Merry called to her. Addy opened her eyes and found that she was completely on top of Zoro who was still snoozing away. When did that happen? When she got up Zoro woke up as well and the two of them stared at what the others accomplished. They had tied a bunch of old sheets all over the Merry, most likely to catch Wind that was blowing through. Addy could feel it whipping through her hair. She hoped that the sheets would hold up. They did look rather worn and several of them were a little better than patchwork.

"ADDY!" Luffy yelled. He was sitting on his special seat. "FORWARD!"

"As you wish Captain," Addy said taking the helm. "I hope this works."

" _I do as well,"_ Merry said though she was slightly nervous. " _They fixed the rudder up nicely_ _so it should_. _Just… Can you make this quick? I don't want to be in the air for too long_."

"Thanks for small miracles," Addy said as the started flying upwards carried entirely by the wind up the hole. "I will try to Merry. It shouldn't take long."

" _Thanks._ "

The rest of the crew was waving to the people below. When they flew out and landed back safely in Ocean. Addy immediately felt this sense of relief. The blood lust and power surge flowed out her body and she felt drained. She almost collapsed against the pole.

" _Addy_!" Merry exclaimed.

"I'm fine," Addy murmured standing herself up. They really needed a relaxing adventure. A few days on Merry and everything would be golden.

"Addy?" Nami asked walking into the lounge. "You okay? You sort of freaked out back there."

"I am better now," she replied letting go of the helm and started sinking onto the floor. Yep definitely could use a few days. She felt her eyes start to close and exhaustion take over her body. Perhaps she needed another nap, and a good bath. Nami was yelling about something but the words were hazy. Addy thought she yelled for someone and then she felt two more people came into the room. They grasped her arms to help lift her up, but Addy was too tired. Why were they not letting her sleep? All she need was a good night's rest and everything would be good. Everything would be fine.

* * *

DamnBlackHeart- Canon characters are immensely important to me so it made me really happy to read that. A lot of the relationship buildup has been preplanned but there is some stuff that is completely spontaneous. It is an interesting mix.

blackcat711- My lips are sealed. :) While she doesn't exactly in this chapter she definitely will in other ones.

Jag- Smart move. Just wait until we get to Loguetown after the next arc. There are going to be some very interesting developments there.


	47. Sidetracked Part 1

Author's Note:

So this is the start of Sidetracked. It isn't going to be very long, we should be done by the end of the week. This arc is essentially what happens during that Buggy story. It is based on episode on episode 45. As always please review and let me know what you think.

This is the remastered version.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

It was a lovely day. The sky was blue with a few clouds and a light breeze was blowing. Seagulls squawked in the air. Addy was by the figure head looking out towards Ocean. After passing out the day before due to exhaustion, she slept for several hours before waking up again for dinner. She then spent the night with Zoro after insisting she was fine several times. He finally got the message after she jumped him. Things were good. Nami and Usopp was somewhere in the back of the ship, Luffy and Sanji were in the orange grove while Zoro was taking a nap somewhere.

" _I don't suppose we could set aside a workshop space_?" Merry asked. " _It might be a good idea for both Nami and Usopp_."

"I can talk to Nami about it, though I am not sure where we would set up. The storage room has some space, though I am not sure how high a priority…" She heard Usopp scream and what looked like flames shoot out from the back of the ship.

She grabbed a flask of water from the storage room before racing towards Usopp. She turned the corner to see him running around with fire coming out of his eyes yelling for water, Luffy on the ground yelling at Sanji about oranges and Nami looking at the newspaper. Perhaps they did need a workshop.

Unfurling her whip she gently wrapped it around Usopp and yanked him towards her, where she immediately poured water into his eyes.

"Thanks Addy," he said bringing up his hands to rub them.

"No, don't do that. Here…" She poured water on a cloth and handed it to him. "Lie down and put this over your eyes. You will be fine in a few minutes." Usopp did just that and she looked at the rest of the crew. Luffy was sitting on the railing, Nami was sitting in her deck chair reading while Sanji was standing guard over the oranges.

"C'mon! Just one tangerine!" Luffy begged. "You're such a cheapskate, Sanji!" Luffy stuck his tongue at him.

"No!" Sanji yelled.

"Well, oh, well! I'm happy now, anyways!"

"The world sure is a turbulent place," Nami said. "Another coup in Villa…" Suddenly two papers came out of the newspaper catching on the wind."

"Fliers?" Luffy asked as they floated past him. They both landed on the deck in front of them face up. It took a second for them to realize what they were and then the Merry descended into chaos.

Luffy picked up his and was laughing. The bounty had a picture of him waving with a big grin on his face. The number was impressive as well. 30 mil was not a small chunk of change in this sea. Addy looked at hers, wondering where they could have gotten her picture.

"18 mil.." she said.

" _What did you do_?!" Merry asked.

"We're wanted criminals now!" Luffy laughed. "At least me and Addy are."

"Dead or alive…" Usopp muttered. "30 million Berries and 18 million…?!"

"It says I'm 30 million Berries!" Luffy shouted. He looked like the happiest man in the world his smile taking up most of his face.

"Look! I'm gonna be seen around the world! Kaya might notice!" Usopp said pointing towards Luffy's poster.

"What?!" Sanji said taking a closer look at the poster. "They put Long-nose in but left me out?!" Luffy was still laughing. "Where are you?! I don't see you anywhere!"

"See!" Usopp stated pointing towards himself on the poster.

"Oh you are there," Addy said.

Sanji started pouting. "It's just the back of your head. That's nothing to brag about."

"Don't be so glum! You can get on these without being captain if you get more important!"

"Seriously?!" Sanji looked so excited at the thought of having his own bounty poster.

"Just keep on tryin' hard!"

Luffy was still laughing. He could probably go for a world record. Sanji and Usopp were dancing on the deck and Addy could not stop smiling. A bounty wasn't exactly in her plans but then she was a pirate. This was bound to happen eventually.

"Let's rush into the Grand Line, men!" Luffy shouted holding his arms in the air.

"YEAH!" her, Sanji and Usopp cried out.

"Yet again, you guys don't understand the seriousness of the situation!" Nami stated. "Addy I thought you would get it. This means our lives are in danger now!"

"They always were Nami," Addy pointed out. The boys were still cheering in the background. "We are pirates; this isn't exactly a pleasure cruise."

"I know but this is no time to be taking it easy and relaxing in the East Blue. Now that two of us have bounties the Marines aren't going to stand idly by."

"Let them come." Addy shrugged. "That is part of our job description. Besides the fewer Marines they are in the world the better off we will be."

"What about bounty hunters?!"

"Do I really need to write out a job description for you? We are pirates. It comes with the territory. Besides we have Zoro and he seems like the leader of the bounty hunters in this sea. Or was."

Nami still looked unsure. Addy smiled fondly at her and sat down next to her.

"Look Nami," she said. "I having been doing this my entire life and trust me when I say bounties are a good thing. Yes the will earn us a fair amount of trouble but among fellow pirates a high bounty means more respect. And out there on the Grand Line, we are going to need all the respect we can get."

"Let's go! Let's go! Grand Line!" The boys shouted. Addy laughed and held hers up again.

'Yes respect and attention' Addy thought though a small frown appeared on her face. It wasn't Marines and bounty hunters she was worried about. No, it was someone far, far, far more dangerous.

" _I hate to interrupt the celebrating but Addy we are approaching a ship_ ," Merry stated.

"Hey everyone," Addy called out. "We are approaching another ship on port side."

"What? How?" Nami asked. Suddenly a ship appeared in the distance. Luffy climbed on top of the railing to look at it as they sailed past. Usopp standing right beside him.

"Wait was that a Marine ship?" Addy asked standing beside Usopp.

" _Can we pretend it wasn't_?" Merry asked. " _We don't have to fight every Marine ship we come across_."

"Apparently, we do," Addy said as the Marine ship was now sailing directly beside them.

"Do you think some pirates attacked it? That warship is scrapped," Luffy pointed out.

"It's not nice of the Navy to toss its scrapped ships into the ocean," Usopp added in.

"Well let's put it out of its misery then," Addy said unfurling her whip.

"This is not a scrapped ship!" a man who Addy assumed was the commander yelled. He looked vaguely familiar but Addy could not remember where she saw him. Marines tended to bleed into one another. One would think with pink hair that they would be memorable. "Do you guys got knotholes for eyes?! Have you forgotten what Iron Fist Fullbody looks like?!"

"Where have we met him?" Addy asked.

She heard Merry sigh. " _He is the guy from Baratie._ _The one that shot the cannon ball."_

"Oh! You're that Navy guy from sometime!" Luffy shouted.

" _Can you guys not remember anyone?_ " Merry asked.

"Only the people we like," Addy said.

"Are you stranded? Want us to help you?" Luffy asked.

Addy bonked him on the head. "We are not helping Marines."

"Quit fooling around!" Fullbody shouted. "Our meeting here spells the end of your luck! Monkey D. Luffy and Addy! You're under arrest!" He held up their bounty posters. Addy had to laugh. It had only been half an hour and someone was already trying to arrest them.

"Yeah! That's a good picture of me, huh?!" Luffy said.

"And of the back of my head!" Usopp pointed out.

"They say, 'Dead or Alive'" Fullbody growled.

"Oh good, you can read," Addy said. "I was worried there for a moment."

"Aim the turret!"

Addy could hear it creaking as they lowered the cannon to aim at them. This was just sad.

"What's all the noise?" Nami asked. She went back to reading the newspaper. "What's going on?"

"We are being attacked," Addy said bored. "Anything interesting in the news?"

"It says you attacked a commercial fishing vessel,"

"Define commercial fishing vessel. I attacked poachers but I guess to the World Government that means the same thing."

"Oh? You're gonna shoot?" Luffy asked Fullbody. Usopp was freaking out.

"They're aiming right at us!" Usopp shrieked. "This is bad!"

"Alright!" Luffy said. "Leave it to me! I'll bounce it back again!"

"Luffy," Zoro said. Addy turned towards him. When did he get here? "Let me handle this one."

"Yeah, yeah you stay back here," Usopp stated grabbing Luffy shoulder and dragging him away.

"H-How come?" Luffy asked.

"Cause you mess things up. C'mon! Over here!"

Addy raised an eyebrow at him. "You can cut through cast iron?"

Zoro drew his blade. "I can cut through anything."

"Right…" Addy didn't believe him but she decided to humor him. The cannon ball was coming towards them, heading straight for Zoro. He slashed through it as if nothing was even there, the two halves flying past them and landing with a plonk in the water.

" _Yay Zoro!"_ Merry called out. " _Now let's get going before they fire another one._ "

"Awesome!" Luffy pointed out.

"It was impressive," Addy said. "I think you caused the Marines to start freaking out."

Zoro sheathed his blade. "Don't bother people when they're napping," he stated.

"That's just common sense," Addy stated. "Shall we sink the ship now?"

Fullbody was looking more desperate by the second. "There's plenty more where that came from! Fire!"

The cannon started creaking again as it tried to aim for them.

"Huh? This is bad," Luffy said.

"It is?" Usopp asked.

Suddenly their cannon blew up creating a cloud of black smoke. It covered the Marines in a layer of gun powder.

"See?" Luffy said. "There were cracks in the cannon."

"Yeah, that's definitely bad," Usopp remarked.

In a last desperate move the Marine ship slammed into Merry, making it so that there were no gaps between the two ships.

" _Hey!"_ Merry said. " _That hurt._ _I changed my mind. Do whatever you want to them Addy."_

"You damn brats," Fullbody yelled at them. "Don't you dare mock the power of a former Navy HQ Lieutenant. We'll just have to fight you hand-to hand!" He jumped onto Merry. "Men! Follow me!" The Marines started charging towards them, going for Luffy and Usopp.

"I got this Captain," Addy said unfurling her whip and snapping it in the air. This caused the Marines to pause and take several steps back. All except for Fullbody who ran up to Luffy and punched him straight in the face. Instead of its intended effect it launched Luffy head backwards, causing his neck to stretch.

"Gomu-Gomu no Bell!" Luffy shouted slamming his head into Fullbody which forced him into the railing.

During that Addy had forced the other Marines back on their ship, giving them numerous lashes. She didn't really even need to try. Most were too scared to approach her.

It was then that Sanji showed up wearing a pink apron with a fat penguin on it and a frying pan. Fullbody started screaming as if his worst nightmare just appeared before his very eyes.

"You got some real balls, pickin a fight during mealtime, tough guy," Sanji drawled. "Don't got any soup bowls today. You plannin' to lick the deck or somethin?"

"W-What's that waiter doing here?!" Fullbody screamed backing as far away as he could from Sanji. He proceeded to jump back on his ship and flee into Ocean along with the rest of his crew.

"Huh? He's done already?" Luffy asked adjusting his hat.

"He was nothing but talk," Usopp pointed out. Addy recoiled her whip and placed it back on her hip.

"He's as damn wimpy as ever," Sanji stated.

"C'mon you guys!" Nami said. "Keep it down! Honestly! I can't even relax and read a newspaper here!"

"Nami dear, Addy sweet! I finished preparing your meals!" Sanji shouted joyously.

"Ooh! I'm starving!" Luffy yelled. "Let's eat! Food! Food!"

"I guess its Captain's orders," Addy said heading towards the kitchen. She needed to make course corrections anyway. As she was heading up the stairs she hesitated slightly, her bounty poster gripped in her hands.

'I wonder how they will react?' Addy thought taking a shot before going into the kitchen which was filled with pleasant aromas. Hopefully it wouldn't cause too many problems.

…

Meanwhile somewhere in the New World, David sighed as he looked at the newspaper. Not much was going on, usual world chaos. Some town was rebelling but it didn't really concern them. Why did he buy it again?

He pushed his strawberry blond hair out of his eyes and sat up looking over the crew on the lower decks. David was sitting on the red couch that they set up for him on the balcony that was connected to their library which allowed for both peace and quiet and a nice look out point over both Ocean and the crew. Seemed like nothing was happening. The crew was having a dance off over something but that was a common occurrence.

It was then that he noticed that two things fluttered out of the newspaper. Bounty posters. Well let's see who had earned the World Government's ire. He picked up the first one and his eyes widen in surprise.

'Sarabi is going to want to see this,' he thought. 'We are going to need to add him to the list of potentials.' He picked up the other bounty poster and his jaw dropped.

"Oh Ocean," he said. "What have you gotten yourself into Addy?" After they received that message from Ocean telling them that Addy found a crew David wasn't overly concerned. Maybe he needed to be. Rolling up the bounty posters he let out the breath he was holding in, and promptly teleported two decks to the game room where Sarabi was.

"David," she stated placing down a rook. Her and Cassandra were playing their usual chess game and as usual Sarabi was winning. "Something come up?" She turned towards him her glacial eyes matching with her long ice blue hair, pushed behind her pointed ears. She was wearing her usual halter dress which showed off the tattoos and birthmarks covering her body. Despite the light blue color it still stood out in contrast against her pale skin. It was a dazzling array of snowflakes covering almost all of her with lines connecting each one of them. The only place without a snowflake was her face. Instead lines connected and swirled around like the currents underneath Ocean.

David pulled up a chair and sat down placing his chain sickle he normally kept on his hip on the table. He wasn't going to need it here. He watched as Cassandra pondered her next move before reaching for her knight to take her knight to check the king. Sarabi swiftly took it with her bishop.

"Yeah, actually. I thought you should see this," he unfurled the poster revealing a smiling boy with black hair and a straw hat. Sarabi immediately stopped paying attention to the game and reached out towards the poster gently taking it from his hands.

"Captain's hat," she said softly looking down at the poster. She turned to look back at David, her blue eyes meeting his browns. "So, this is Shanks choice for the next Pirate King?"

"Given he has the hat that is the logical conclusion," David pointed out leaning back on his chair. "It's an interesting choice."

"Considering that he is Garp's grandson, very much so. We should keep an eye on him. He might have potential. At least compared to Newgate's choice."

"Hey! Ace is a good kid."

"He is a good kid that will never in a million years become Pirate King. He doesn't want it, considering he has basically outright dismissed Captain. He would never take on the mantle. At least not willingly."

"That is something you're going to have to discuss with Newgate."

"Please, he is the most stubborn man on the planet."

"Right, why did you marry him again?" Sarabi threw one of the pawns at him but he caught it and placed it back on the board.

"Anyway," Sarabi stressed. "The point is moot. None of us have the final say on who going to be Pirate King. That right belongs to…" Sarabi stopped and her eyes went sad. David drooped as well.

"That's the other thing," he mumbled unfurling the other poster. "Addy has gotten herself a bounty."

The game immediately stopped as Sarabi grabbed the bounty poster from him and placed it on the chess table, knocking over all the pieces. Cassandra stood up as well her black eyes contrasting with her gray hair. David remembered when she used to be a red head, but her hair had long ago lost its color though she was still as fiery as the day he and Sarabi met her. At that moment Pearl came in as well. Wearing his trademark pirate hat that looked like he got it out of a bargain bin, he looked disheveled. His tanned skin, brown eyes and braided black hair all matched that. Tattoos covered both of his arms giving him a slightly intimating look as well. A look that did not match his personality.

"Addy has a bounty!" Pearl shouted.

"Keep it down," Sarabi whispered. "We can't have the crew knowing."

"Why not? This is a cause of celebration. I vote we have cake. Lots of cake."

"He's right Sarabi," Cassandra said. "Normally we would be starting the festivities."

"You know we can't" Sarabi said as she looked at the picture. It was caught in the aftermath of a battle or at least Sarabi thought it was. It was the only thing that would explain the look. Addy green eyes were narrowed and filled with bloodlust. Wind caught her black hair giving her a wild look, untamable, like the sea.

"Reminds me of your first bounty poster," David said. He pointed to the number. "Even the bounty the same." Sarabi gave a slight smile though it did not last long. She furled the bounty back up and handed it back to David.

"Don't let anyone else know," she said before turning to walk out of the room. David rolled his eyes and grabbed her arm where he promptly transported them to their cabin though not before grabbing his chain sickle and placing it back on his hip. He always felt uncomfortable when it wasn't at arm's reach.

Their cabin was covered with pictures, of their family, their old crew with Roger, their current one, a lot of Newgate's crew, as well as anyone else who they considered friends. It didn't leave much room for anything else besides the desk, the bureau and the king sized bed.

"You know you are allowed to be happy about this," he said.

"I can't," Sarabi stated. She sat down on the desk chair and buried her face in her hands. "Addy was banished from this ship. She is no longer a part of this crew. She can never be part of this crew."

"She is still your daughter." David kneeled down in front of her and took her hands in his. "Be happy about that."

"David she has a bounty. Chances are the captain she found is interested in becoming Pirate King and is heading towards the Grand Line. Towards us. You know the terms. If we meet her again, even if it is just bumping into her on an island, she has to be executed."

"Sarabi…"

"There is no way around this. If I run into Add… Adamaris of Delphi, then I have to kill her. For the crime that she committed there is no other punishment. She must die."

…

Addy sneezed and rubbed her nose hoping she wasn't getting sick. That would be really, really bad.

"Someone must be talking about you," Usopp said.

"Is that so?" she remarked. "Hope the conversation is entertaining."

The Straw Hats were standing by the figure head, looking over the map that Nami brought out. Well most of them were standing, Zoro was sitting down and leaning against the railing.

"We're finally nearing the Grand Line," Nami said. "It looks like the only way into it is through Reverse Mountain, here." She pointed to a large mountain on the map where all the seas seemed to be flowing into it.

"What a pain," Zoro said. "Can't we just sail straight into it?"

"Nope," Sanji pointed out. "From what geezer told me, that's the only way boats can enter."

"How come?" Usopp asked.

"Cause it's supposedly dangerous."

"But how come?!"

"I don't know anymore than that!"

"The reason for that is…" Nami started but was interrupted by Luffy.

"Alright!" Luffy shouted. "I got it! Then let's head straight into it!"

"Are you even paying attention?!" Nami yelled at him.

"But it sounds fun! Plus it'd feel way better going straight into it!"

Nami placed her hand on her forehead, "Talking to you makes me feel like I'm gonna go crazy."

"Anyways, let's stop at an island first and get meat! Meat! Meat!"

Nami pointed towards a tiny island on the map, close to the Grand Line. "There's a famous city on this island. Loguetown."

"Loguetown? What? Is it famous for its meat?"

"Also known as the city of the beginning and the end," Zoro pointed out. "I'm pretty sure I've heard that before."

"It is the birthplace of Gol D Rogers as well as the place he was executed," Addy said.

"The town where the King of the Pirates died," Luffy stated.

"Wanna go?" Nami asked.

"Yeah! I wanna see it! I wanna see the town where the man who got the One Piece, everything this world has to offer, was born and then died! Addy!"

"On it Captain," she head heading towards the helm. "We will be there in a few days, maybe more if Wind gives us trouble."

"Not with me guiding us," Nami said walking with Addy. "We will get them to where they need to go."

"Without a doubt."

* * *

Jag- Zoro was indeed disappointed but recovered quickly once she woke up. :) Next update will be Wednesday. Hope you can hold out until then.

blackcat711- You might be one of the few looking forward to Skypeia. Considering how much more experience Addy has she probably is going to stay the dominate one in the relationship, though that doesn't mean Zoro won't challenge her every now and again.

hellspam- Glad you liked it. This arc should be wrapped up in a week and the next one in two. Hope you get everything accomplished.

Sira- Addy's relationships are very important, I think probably the most important part of the story. Also Addy isn't the nicest person but that is what sort of happens when you are raised as a pirate. Yes I do mean Ace, as in that Ace. Her and Ace actually have a sort of complicated story that will be explained once we run into him in Alabasta.


	48. Sidetracked Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _I have no idea what I was thinking when I wrote this. It is supposedly based on episode 46. I was probably super tired so take that as a warning. As always please review and let me know what you think. The more reviews, the more motivated I am to continuing writing this massive monster._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Raise the anchor!" Luffy yelled. Zoro proceeded to pull it up. "Set the sails!" Sanji and Usopp unfurled them. "Bring the ship forward! Full speed ahead to the Grand Line!"

"Looks like that is our cue Merry," Addy said taking a shot before setting her hands on the pole. Luffy couldn't sleep so he decided that they needed to leave now. After sailing late into the night only to set off early in the morning most of the Straw Hats were tired. But Luffy was the Captain. It would still take them a day before they reached Loguetown. Maybe she could take a cue out of Zoro's book and take a nap.

" _You know alcohol is not conducive to staying awake_ ," Merry said.

"We are not talking about this now," Addy said. "Or ever."

" _Addy you are not doing well. You have a problem_. _Ever since you got the bounty..."_

"Which was two days ago. I don't think I have completely broken down since then."

"Sanji! Breakfast!" Luffy yelled.

"I will deal with it when it becomes a problem," Addy said watching the sunrise through the door. "Since it isn't a problem I have nothing to deal with."

" _Addy_ …"

Nami and Sanji walked by the door. Nami coming from tending her orange grove and Sanji from the sails. Sanji came in to the kitchen with his usual gusto.

"Morning Addy sweet," he chanted. "You are looking lovely today."

"I look like I haven't slept in two days," Addy said.

" _That's because you haven't_ ," Merry prodded.

"But I appreciate the lie," Addy finished.

"Anything for you," Sanji said starting up breakfast.

Since they were on course there was nothing more for her to do. Addy left the room and stood by Nami overlooking the others. Usopp and Luffy were trying to convince Zoro to play tag without much success.

"You doing okay?" Nami asked her nudging her shoulder.

"You are like the second person to ask me that," Addy groaned. "I am fine."

"That sounded believable."

"I'm gonna get some more sleep before breakfast," Zoro yawned.

"Oh?! Cause you don't like losing, huh?!" Usopp teased.

That got Zoro. "What did you say?! I don't give a damn about that!"

"See! You're suddenly mad!"

"What?! Hold it, you guys!" Zoro started chasing them around the deck.

Usopp stuck his tongue at him. "But it's the truth, isn't it? Bleehhh!"

"Stop right there!" Zoro yelled chasing after Usopp.

"I'm over here! Come get me!"

"C'mon Zoro! Chase me, too!" Luffy shouted. They were racing all over the deck. Addy could hear Merry laughing at their antics causing Addy to crack a smile.

"Nami dear, Addy sweet! Your meals are ready!" Sanji said coming out of the kitchen.

"That is really kind of you but…" Addy started to say before Nami yanked her into the kitchen.

"No, you are eating even if I have to force it down your throat," Nami said and proceed to do so grabbing one of the tiny fishes on Addy's plate and shoving it in her mouth. Addy swallowed it and gave Nami the death glare.

"Hey, guys! Foods on!" Sanji yelled calling to the rest of them.

"Yeah!" they shouted.

"Even after he said all that," Nami stated.

"Huh? What, Nami dear?" Sanji asked.

"No, it's nothing!" she stated. "Whew, I'm hungry!" She sat down and forced Addy to sit down as well. Addy rolled her eyes but complied taking a shot. Nami looked at her worried but Addy waved it off. Everything was fine.

"Food! Food! Food!" Luffy shouted. "This looks yum!" There was soup and bread for everyone as well as a variety of meat except for Addy who had a selection of tiny fish. Sanji quickly caught on to her eating habits with very few questions asked.

"Say, what do you suppose happened to Buggy after that?" Nami asked.

"Who?" Addy wondered raising an eyebrow. "The Clown?" She vaguely remembered talking about it in the Bandit King's cave but only in scraps.

" _Don't ask me, I don't know who she is talking about,"_ Merry said.

"Buggy? Oh, that Buggy?" Luffy stated with his mouth full. "Who knows? Maybe he's at the bottom of the ocean."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Zoro said coming in dragging Usopp by his nose. "Pirates are a stubborn lot, every last one of 'em."

When he let go Usopp nose sprung and was an interesting shade of red. "You're the one who kept chasing me stubbornly!" he cried. "Oww…"

"I hunted pirates for years. I can tell." Zoro said digging into his food and coffee.

Luffy was already stealing from other people's plates, namely Usopp's.

"Not that it matters, but your food's gone Usopp," Sanji pointed out. "Here you are, Nami dear, Addy sweet," he placed even more food in front of them while Usopp was bugging out about the lack of his. "A special Yogurt Dessert for Nami dear, and a sweet fish for Addy sweet."

"Oh! Thank you, Sanji-kun!" Nami responded.

"I am sure it will be great," Addy answered.

It did look good and it smelled wonderful. The taste was melt in her mouth. However Addy could only take a few bites from it before it overwhelmed her. She took another shot, perhaps that would help.

"Addy sweet are you okay?" Sanji asked hovering over her. "You not eating." Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared at her concerned looks on their faces. Particularly Luffy and Zoro who both had sharp frowns.

"Look I am fine," she said.

" _Lies_ ," Merry hissed.

"I guess I just haven't been sleeping well."

Luffy placed his hand on her head. "Sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep," he murmured.

"Captain?"

"I order it." He smiled at her. "It's the only way you're gonna do it."

"But what about Merry? It's still going to take us awhile and….."

"Sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep, then eat food always helps."

"Fine, I will go sleep, but if anything happens…."

"Sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep."

Addy rolled her eyes and got up. Everyone was watching her except for Luffy who had gone back to eating. She headed towards the crow's nest since she never really could sleep inside. Addy could hear the other's muttering about stuff as she left. Probably planning something.

Once she got into the crow's nest she looked over the Ocean, filling her with a sense of inner peace. Feeling calmer she leaned back against the railing and closed her eyes. That is when it hit her like a freight train. Images of Riley, David, Pearl and Sarabi. They just swirled in her brain until she opened her eyes back up.

"Ocean dammit it," she muttered glugging down her flask until there was nothing left. Perhaps she should get stronger stuff if the weak junk was no longer helping to block everything. She closed her eyes again and the images still came if slightly fuzzier.

She opened them back up and sighed. This wasn't working, she needed more. Only question was how to get it. Addy then saw a bottle of sake floating right in front of her and made an immediate grab for it, knocking back a shot of that as well.

"Thanks," she muttered before handing it back. Zoro took it from her and drank it down. Addy wished she had the same tolerance, or at least had the same tolerance before she started consuming it in mass quantities. "What are you doing here?"

"Taking a nap," he stated laying down next to her.

Addy arched an eyebrow, "Here of all places? Are you sure that's what you want?"

"You don't own the crows nest. I can sleep wherever I please." He closed his eyes and Addy frowned. Jealousy was not a great trait. She felt a hand on the side of her head and it gently placed it down so that she was laying on Zoro's chest. Addy could hear him breathing and the sound of his heart beat.

"Zoro," she said.

He cracked one eye open, "Yes?"

"Thanks." She curled right up into him and he wrapped his arms around her. It was comforting and warm. Closing her eyes the images were still there but they were fragments, dissociated pieces. She could work with this…. Maybe…. No…

She sat up again and sighed, rubbing her eyes. This couldn't keep happening. Addy wasn't dumb. She knew she needed sleep it's just that she couldn't. Ever since the bounty poster everything just remind her of them. Particularly since they decided to hang them up in the kitchen, where she looked at them every single time she took the helm. It wasn't just Riley anymore, that would be painful enough, it was everyone. Addy didn't know if that was better or worse.

She felt arms wrap around her from behind and Zoro placed his head on her shoulder. He had gotten way more cuddly since they started having sex, something she thought would be annoying but she actually found soothing.

"Zoro," she mumbled leaning into him. His hair was surprisingly soft "I thought you were taking a nap."

"I would if you were quiet," he teased lightly nipping at her neck.

"Or do you have other plans?" She flipped herself so that she was on top of him. A faint blush covered his face. Addy hoped that he would never stop doing that. "Seems like neither of us can sleep." She lightly traced her finger across his chest and smiled as he shivered under her touch. Even this could get him riled up. Addy leaned forward and whispered in his ear, "Ready for another lesson?" She slowly removed her tank top leaving her in a sports bra and shorts. Zoro's breath hitched and she could feel his hand on her back pushing her forward.

"ADDY! ZORO!" Luffy called. Zoro groaned and threw his head back and Addy laughed putting back on the tank top.

"I'm going to kill him," Zoro muttered as he could up.

"Don't worry," Addy said. "We can continue what we started later tonight."

That seemed to perk up Zoro and together the two of them headed down to where the rest of the crew was waiting on deck.

"Okay Captain what's up?"

"SURPRISE!" they all yelled including Merry with the exception of Zoro who just shrugged his shoulders.

"Um okay, am I missing something because I don't see the surprise," Addy said.

"WE LOVE YOU!" they all shouted again with the exception of Zoro who clapped her on the back.

"That's the surprise? I mean I love you guys too…"

Nami walked up to her and embraced her in a hug. "We know you have been sad recently and it seems like your mind is somewhere else."

Well there were right about that. For a few days Addy felt like her mind has been drifting. Like she was never really here but somewhere else. On a sea far away.

"So we built you something."

"You built me something?"

Nami started dragging Addy towards the lounge, the other's following behind.

"You don't seem to have any space here to call your own," Nami said. "You don't even really go into our room. When you are not at the helm you are in the crows nest." Nami pulled her through the doorway the others standing right outside the room waiting to see what her reaction was going to be. "So we built you a shelving unit."

"I built it," Usopp said proudly. "I say it's some of my best handiwork." Addy didn't say anything just stood and stared. Along the wall on the opposite side of the kitchen, Usopp built some enclosed shelves within reach. Near the bottom shelves were two baskets, where Addy could also put stuff. She pulled one out and just held it as if trying to understand what it was.

"You built me shelves," Addy mumbled.

"Do you not like them?" Usopp wavered.

Addy put the basket back on the bottom shelf and turned around facing her crew. The Straw Hats all looked worried as if there attempt had been in vain. She walked up to Usopp and grabbed him pulling him into a hug. He stiffened at first but then relaxed.

"You built me shelves," she chocked out before letting go and embracing Nami who hugged her back. "Shelves." She moved onto Sanji who hugged her a little tighter than necessary and then onto Luffy who clang to her. After extracting herself from Luffy which was easier said than done, she turned to Zoro and hugged him. He didn't know what to do so he just patted her lightly on the shoulder.

"They told you to distract me didn't they" she whispered in his ear. "But you didn't have to do all that.

"Yes and I wanted to," he whispered back.

"Don't worry I still plan on finishing our lesson tonight." She let him go and walked back to her shelves. Her shelves.

"Know what you are going to do with them?" Nami asked.

"I have a few ideas," Addy said. The rest of the Straw Hats had left to clean up the ship. It wouldn't do to go into port looking like a complete mess.

" _Care to elaborate_?" Merry asked.

"Eh, I am not sure yet." Addy stated shrugging her shoulders. "Give me some time to think about it."

"Well we will be getting to Loguetown tomorrow," Nami pointed out. "Perhaps something there will catch your eye."

" _Get a music box!"_

"A music box might be nice. Something soothing," Addy suggested

"That's not a bad idea," Nami said. "I could use one as well for when I am drawing maps."

"We should really set up some kind of workshop," Addy said. "Perhaps in the storage room. I don't think we should have Usopp experimenting on the kitchen table, or anywhere where Captain might interrupt."

The two of them walked out to make sure that the others weren't destroying the ship. Standing by the orange groves they could oversee everything. Well Addy was, Nami was tending to them considering Addy didn't know anything about plants. Zoro and Sanji were moping the decks while Usopp was polishing their cannon and Luffy…. Was being Luffy.

"Hey, look! A hermit crab!" Luffy pointed out. "I wonder when he got on board. At Nami's village?"

"Probably," Nami turned to talk to Luffy. "That or maybe at Addy's village, or Usopp's village?"

"If so, that's incredible," Usopp said. "That'd mean he's been traveling with us this whole time!"

"Did you just say something?" Luffy asked.

All three of them looked up at Luffy.

"Nope," Addy responded.

"Huh?" Usopp stated.

"Me? I didn't say anything," Nami said turning back towards her trees.

"That's weird," Luffy said scratching his head. "Must have been my imagination."

"Hey Luffy!" Sanji shouted. "Quit slacking off!"

"Oh! Sorry! Sorry!"

" _It's been awhile since I felt this clean,"_ Merry said.

"Sounds like the boys are doing their job," Addy replied. She moved up into the crow's nest writing down a list of stuff she wanted to get in Loguetown, now that she had some place to put stuff. Only issue was how to convince Nami to give her money. Somehow the day just flew by. As the sunset and the stars started reappearing she gazed up at them.

" _I heard that there are pictures in the stars. Luffy was talking with Nami about them."_

"He isn't wrong. The stars up their hold thousands of images."

"I didn't know you were a stargazer," Zoro said climbing up.

Addy stood up and took his hand, raising it up. She then moved his fingers so that he was pointing at a cluster of stars.

"See that one that you're pointing towards," Addy stated. "It's called the swordsman. The legend goes that he was such a great swordsman that the Gods wanted to grant him immortality. Instead he chose to immortalize all the great swordsman. Supposedly every time a new greatest swordsman comes to power another star appears on his belt." She traced it using Zoro finger. "Also the stars reform to the current best sword. See it almost looks like it is holding Mihawk's blade. If your dream comes true that will be you immortalized in the stars."

He stared up at the sky with her gripping her hand. Addy remained silent, out of respect for him. This was not just some triviality, it was his dream. His hand was resting on his white blade.

"Thank you," he murmured before clearing his throat. "It's actually dinner time. The cook says we can't eat until everyone is present."

"So Luffy must be chewing at the table then," Addy said.

" _No just the table cloth_ ," Merry sighed.

"We better get down there then," Addy suggested. She was actually feeling rather peckish.

"Can you show me more stars after dinner?" Zoro asked somewhat quiet.

Addy looked at him somewhat surprised. "Sure I would be happy to and afterwards perhaps we could pick up where we left off."

"I would like that."

* * *

Jag- Will do. :)


	49. Sidetracked Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _I am not really sure what I was thinking with this arc but oh well. Next week with start up in Loguetown with Birthplace of a King so keep an eye out for that. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _On another note what would you guys think of a modern AU featuring Addy and the rest of the Straw Hats. I am not sure if it would be a highschool, college, or whatever AU. I am open to suggestions and I am thinking I would make it prompt based if people are interested. It would be updated every Tuesday/Thursday. Let me know._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Once again the sun woke Addy up. She groaned shielding her eyes. From its position she could tell that it was early morning. Zoro was still sleeping right next to her perfectly content. She smiled at him, allowed herself a moment of weakness and kissed his bare shoulder. She was wearing only her sports bra and shorts while Zoro remained shirtless.

"Zoro in shirts should be a crime," Addy mumbled.

" _Why don't you tell him that,"_ Merry said. " _I am sure that you will get an interesting reaction._ "

"Maybe I will."

"Tell who what now?" Zoro groaned.

"Nothing Zoro," she told him getting up and stretching her limbs. She felt her shoulder pop. "We should probably get up before breakfast gets made."

" _Shouldn't be long now. Sanji is already in the kitchen_. _I say you have 20 minutes at most_."

"Although," Addy said. "We could also use the time we have to our advantage."

She saw Zoro smirk. He grabbed her arm, pulling her back down towards him so that she was pressed against his chest. "And how do you plan on doing that?"

Addy nibbled on his neck causing him to moan and extend it, allowing her to have more access. "Ever heard of a quickie?" she asked. "I am sure you would be a master at it."

He flipped her over so that he was on top. "I am sure I can figure it out," Zoro growled.

"Well someone has become more confident." He smirked before nipping at her neck and starting to move down. Addy placed one hand in his hair and another on his back.

"Zoro," she groaned trying to keep her voice quiet.

"Sorry you were saying something?" He hooked one of his fingers inside the top of her shorts ready to pull them down. "I couldn't hear you. Perhaps you could be a bit louder."

"Nami dear! Addy sweet! Breakfast is ready…" Sanji sang out. "O' food ready."

"FOOD!" Luffy shouted climbing out of the men's room and rushing up the stairs towards the lounge. Usopp groggily followed him and Nami came out of the storage room.

Zoro slammed his head into the crow's nest before standing up, helping Addy up as well.

"Here," he said throwing her tank top at her. She did the same with his white shirt.

"Well that was fun," Addy stated.

" _I'm sorry, I thought making bacon would take longer_ ," Merry said.

Addy rolled her eyes, "We can pick up where we left off later."

"We will," Zoro said jumping out of the crow's nest and landing on deck. Addy shortly followed him.

Breakfast was its usual lively affair, with Luffy trying to steal everyone's food. Sanji yelling at him, Usopp defending his vigorously. Good times all around.

" _Is this how people normally eat_?" Merry asked amused. " _Because this is very entertaining."_

"Glad you're having fun," Addy said before getting up and going towards the helm. They would be in Loguetown in roughly a day if they kept going through the night. Meaning they would arrive the next morning, giving them a full day to shop and explore. She glanced at her new shelves and smiled. It was going to be a fun time. Sanji was in the kitchen preparing for the next meal. He was really dedicated to his job.

"Sanji?" she asked.

"Yes Addy sweet?" he said spinning around to face her. "Do you need anything?"

"You wouldn't mind making shrimp tonight for dinner? I have been sort of having a craving. Plus there high in energy and will keep me up. I have a feeling that I will be pulling an all-nighter."

"Of course, I will make a dish especially for you…" he spun back to the kitchen with a renewed vigor.

Everyone else was on deck, waiting to get to the island. With the course set Addy wandered out there as well, going towards the figurehead where Luffy was sitting. It was his special seat as the crew learned early on. Zoro was also close by taking a nap. Nami was in the back most likely, sitting in her deck chair reading a map. Usopp was also working back there on some experiment.

Suddenly Zoro sneezed.

"Zoro!" Luffy said. "Did you finally catch cold after always sleeping on deck?"

"I've never gotten sick before, only injured," Zoro replied.

"Come to think of it, I've never had a headache myself."

Addy gave them both a sideways look. She was pretty sure humans got sick. Though if these two didn't well that could be useful. Since they didn't have a doctor that could be really useful.

"Addy do you get sick," Luffy asked staring at her with his big brown owl eyes.

"Considering the fact that if I get sick it means that I am dying a rather slow and painful death, than no… I haven't."

"Mm," Luffy responded.

"Is someone out there talkin' about me being a master swordsman?" Zoro asked.

"Ah, I see. Wait!" Luffy stated.

"More likely they are most likely planning your demise," Addy said. "Considering the amount of enemies that you have made, I am surprised you're not sneezing all the time."

Zoro grinned at her. "As long as they are talking about me, I don't care." Zoro shuffled slightly going back to sleep. Suddenly there was an explosion in the back of the ship, knocking Luffy off his special seat. Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"I'll go see what is going on," she said walking back towards where Nami and Usopp were.

"Okay fine Merry your right," Addy said making her way towards the back. It looked like a massive explosion went off. "We will build a workshop today."

" _About time,"_ Merry teased. " _Explosions are fun and all but not good on deck._ "

When Addy made it back there Usopp was lying on the deck covered in soot with a map on his face. Nami looked disheveled and her hair was all over the place.

"Usopp!" She yelled as he got up, taking the map and bonking him on the head. "Look at me… I am going to have to shower again today."

"Bathroom is free and we do still have enough water," Addy said. "Though I think we should get started on that workshop project before you get in there. Willing to lend a hand Usopp?"

Usopp bowed before her. "It would be my genuine pleasure as I am the great Captain Usopp, master builder extraordinary. I once erected houses for thousands of needy families after I destroyed the monster plaguing them…"

Addy grabbed onto him and started dragging him towards the storage room.

"Think you can turn this into something usable?" Addy asked. "I mean I think all we really need is a hardy desk with three drawers one for each of us."

Usopp looked around the room and hummed. "Yeah I can see that working? Three?"

"Yeah, one for you and your stuff, one for Nami's mapmaking equipment, and one for my jewelry kit."

"Jewelry kit?" Usopp shook his head. "You are going to be Nami's favorite person once she finds out."

"Why do you think I haven't told her yet?"

The two of them chuckled.

"Anyway," Addy said. "I will leave you too it…" she started walking out the door.

"Yeah, yeah… Hey! Aren't you going to help?"

She stuck her head through the door, "Yeah, building stuff is not one of my many skills. I would most likely create an abomination." Addy then closed the door behind her, leaving Usopp a grumbling to his work. Though Nami would be coming in shortly to take her shower.

She moved up to the crows nest and settled down for a nap. Might as well get as much rest as she could before she sailed through the night. Closing her eyes instead of images of her previous crew, it was intermixed with her current one. Addy gave a small smile. Those images would never go away. They would remain with her for her entire life. Yet… for the most part it was okay. It was still painful but her nakama were there for her. Captain, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, Sanji, Merry… they were all here. And while the couldn't completely seal the hole, they could partially fill it. Things were starting to look up. Maybe just maybe she could move on. She felt something move close by and opened one eye. Zoro had come up as well. It looked like she wasn't going to get her nap quite yet.

…

"Alright everyone, we will be in Loguetown in about an hour," Addy yawned. It was right after breakfast so she had the crew altogether. "Let's try not to attract too much attention and get in and out with what we need."

"Agreed," Nami said. "I don't think we should be there for more than a day. After all we have the Grand Line we need to get to."

"Yahooo," Luffy yelled through his arms in the air. "Let's go."

"Hold on a second!" Nami turned towards Addy. It's been slipping my mind the past few days but you said that you would tell us about the different Devil Fruits."

"I did?" When did she say that?

"Back when we were in the hole in the ocean. You said something about the bat being a Devil Fruit user."

Addy flinched as she remembered the bat and his Ocean forsaken laugh. "Oh right that… I was actually wrong. Turned out the guy was cursed."

"What bat?" Zoro asked raising an eyebrow.

"You don't want to know," Nami, Usopp and Addy said simultaneously.

Nami steered the conversation back. "Right so Devil Fruits…"

"Okay," Addy started. "Well there are three types. Zoan, which is considered the middle class fruit by many, allows someone to transform into an animal."

"Wait are you serious?" Usopp asked. "There are people who can transform into animals?"

"Oh yeah," Addy replied. "And they are nasty, they gain the traits of the animal they turn into. Do not underestimate them."

"Right so we have animals," Nami said. "What else?"

"Well then you have Paramecia, which is what Luffy is. They are the most common and have the most different abilities. Essentially paramecia cannot really be grouped into one category considering the wide range of abilities it can give. These are the ones we are most likely to run into."

"And the third?"

Addy went quiet and sighed, placing her elbows on the table and interlocking her fingers. "Okay this is important. The third one is Logia. They are the rarest out of all fruit users which is good considering how powerful they are. Logia allows a person to change into an element."

"I am not sure I understand?" Nami said. "How is that more dangerous than the others?"

"Because it basically makes them immune to everything. Swords, physical blows, guns. Unless you catch them by surprise they are basically invulnerable. This is not even getting started on what happens when they attack back. Now this is very important. If anyone meets a Logia fruit user, run. Do not hesitate, do not look back, just run. None of us are at a level where we can take one of those guys down and I would rather have this crew be called cowards then for us to be dead. Understand?"

The ship was quiet as everyone processed what she said. Slowly each of the Straw Hats nodded, even Luffy and Zoro though they seemed reluctant about it. Addy sighed and relaxed. Perhaps they might make it through the Grand Line after all.

" _Hey Addy_ ," Merry said. " _We are approaching the island_."

"Speaking of which," Addy stated. "I think we are already here." Luffy rushed out to see if her could spot the island. The rest of the crew got up and walked to the front of the ship by the figurehead. An island was just coming into view. Luffy jumped onto the railing while Zoro leaned against it. Addy stood next to him. The island did not look like much from this distance, though Addy could just make out the town.

'Loguetown,' Addy thought. 'It wasn't far from here that Roger met my mother for the first time. On a little speck of an island that both Amora and Roger happened to stop at. I wonder if she felt the same way about her Captain as I do mine.'

"Eh? Really?!" Luffy asked. "What island is that?!"

"I just told you the other day!" Nami said coming up towards the three of them, followed by the rest of the crew.

"Huh?" Luffy stated.

"So that's the island where Loguetown is!" Usopp pointed out.

"It's a pretty big town, right?" Sanji asked.

"Yeah, that's what I hear," Nami responded.

"Then it sounds like there might be a market with fresh ingredients."

"I think it might have the best fish market in all of East Blue," Addy added in. "At least that is what my Mom told me." Sanji seemed to be vibrating with joy. He seemed to be excited at the thought of preparing fresh food. Or maybe he was excited about finding something else. She still had no idea what his dream was.

"I'm hittin' up the weapons stores," Zoro said. "Being stuck with one sword doesn't suit a Santoryu user."

"In that case, I guess I'll check out some of the equipment shops," Usopp stated.

"Oh definitely clothes for me," Nami said. "Addy you should join me."

"Nami all of my clothes are water proof. I am not sure I would find any useful. Besides I need to pick up some other stuff, particularly a jewelers kit."

"You can make jewelry?! And you didn't say anything before!" Nami flipped open her bag and handed Addy a stack of beli. "Take as much as you need. No interest."

"Oi why does she get no interest?!" Zoro grumbled.

"Because she can produce something that will actually make us money. She will actually be paying her dues back."

Zoro and Usopp rolled their eyes calling Nami a cheap skate. A couple of kicks from Sanji soon smoothed things over. Or rather made it worse and it was only when Addy stepped in that things calmed down. Luckily no one managed to fall over board…. This time.

" _Don't forget a music box_ ," Merry said. " _Or perhaps some nice art._ _Something to make me feel more homely. Likes seriously would it kill you to put up a painting. Or a statue… something."_

"That island is where Gold Roger was born and then executed, right?" Luffy asked.

"Wow, you actually remember!" Nami pointed out.

"The town where the King of the Pirates died. Also, known as the city of the beginning and end."

The six of them stared at the upcoming island not knowing what was going to occur. After all even the smallest events can ripple.

'Our last stop till the Grand Line,' Addy thought. 'One last stop before our journey really begins.'

* * *

Jag- Those shelves may end up being important or not depending on where I decide to take this story. Anyway glad you like it.

RedHairedOctavia- The Straw Hats are absolutely adorable. Each and every one of them.


	50. Birthplace of a King Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _So we finally made it to Loguetown. Feels like it took forever to reach this far but we are steadily marching onward to the Grand Line. This chapter is based on episode 48. As always please review and let me know what you think, about both this and the modern au idea._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Wow!" Luffy shouted. "What a huge town!"

He was right, this place was huge, Addy thought as she looked down the streets of Loguetown. Just lines and lines of shops and people crowding the streets. It made her slightly uneasy, crowds were never her thing. Wearing a blue short sleeved shirt, dark blue long pants, her belt with her bag and whip attached and much to her chagrin, sandals with buckles, she didn't stick out much. This was good considering she had a bounty on her head. She also tied her hair in an elaborate braid to throw people off further. However she was worried about Luffy. He sort of stuck out wearing his regular outfit and straw hat, but there was no convincing him. They were all standing under a triangular archway right by the docks with Loguetown written on top.

"The place used to be full of pirates on their way to the Grand Line," Nami stated. "It has everything you could ever need!"

"Only if you can find it," Addy pointed out. "Alright, let's promise to meet back here if anything happens or when sunset arrives. Whichever comes first. Hopefully the later."

"Alright! I'm going to go get equipment for our upcoming great adventure," Usopp announced.

"Looks like I can get some good ingredients here," Sanji said cheerfully. "Good women, too!" Addy rolled her eyes. Sanji's head was already in the gutter.

"I got something I want to buy, too," Zoro said.

"Oh? How are you going to do that? Your flat broke, as I recall," Nami pointed out.

"We all are Nami," Addy said. "You control the money. As a matter of fact I am pretty sure one of the first things you did once I got on was take mine. Compensation payment I think you called it."

"Your point being?" Nami grinned at her. "You don't need any more do you? Because you should get the best kit you can. Because I have some…"

Addy brought her hands up, "No I'm good. I will just find you if I need something." Somehow Addy doubted that she would.

"Alright! I'm going to check out the execution platform!" Luffy said. "I'm going to see where the King of the Pirates was executed!" He then ran off leaving the rest of them behind.

"Well it is his right," Addy said. "He is going to be the next one." Everyone else nodded. "Well I'm off. See you guys later." She waved at them and they waved back.

Addy headed where she suspected the jeweler's district was which was probably in the richer part of the town. After zig zagging her way through several streets she found herself in one of the nicer areas. The buildings gleamed and there was absolutely no trash littering the streets. Everyone was slightly dressed up and Addy caught more than a few glances. Sure enough she was right as soon jewelry stores surrounded her. Only question was which one to go too. Each one of them seemed to be bustling with people. She looked around until she spotted the largest one right smack in the middle. She let out a smile.

"Of course Amora would have a store here," she said walking into Gifts from the Sea. There were rows and rows of glittering gems, necklaces, rings, earrings, those little crystal animals. Addy always liked those and Merry wanted some decorations. And she had plenty of room now that she had shelves. She would glue them down if she had to keep them from falling off when the seas got rough.

Addy grabbed a monkey, shark, cat, armadillo, duck, reindeer, crane, bull, horse and a dolphin, placing them in one of the tiny boxes provided. Walking through the aisles she passed by the astronomer's section. Ever since Addy expressed her love of stars, Amora made sure that there was one in every single one of her stores. On one of the shelves was a shiny silver telescope. Addy ran a finger across it. This thing was a beauty.

"Like what you see?" one of the store attendants asked. Addy turned to face him and arched an eyebrow. The guy was a sort of classical handsome, like something out of a classy dinner party. He could almost compete with Sanji. Addy wondered if he would look better out of the ridiculous Gifts of the Sea uniform. That wasn't one of Amora's best ideas. Very few people looked good in neon green.

"Indeed I do," Addy said licking her lips. Might as well milk it for all it was worth. "Does it come with star charts or do I have to get those separately?"

"Normally they are sold as separate items, however today we are doing a special on bundles."

"Excellent, than I will take it, along with this," she handed him the box of crystal animals. "And this…" she handed him a stack of star charts along with blank sheets of paper so she could make her own. "And this," she grabbed the best jeweler kit off the shelf and handed it to him. Somehow he managed to balance everything without falling over. That was impressive.

"As you wish my lady," he said walking over to the cashier where he started checking her out. Addy loved this store. Perhaps she should write Amora a letter, get this guy a promotion. Though she wasn't even sure where Amora was at the moment. Probably establishing another chain of stores somewhere in the Grand Line.

"That would be 950,200 beli," store clerk said. Addy counted out the bills and placed them on the table. Surprisingly she still had some left. Just how much did Nami give her? And how much did Nami have?

"Alright my lady, here are your bags." He handed two of them to her, one with the animals and charts and the other with the telescope and it's folded up stand. "You know I am off in about 20 minutes if you want to go get a drink or something."

Addy laughed. Normally she would be tempted but Zoro flashed in her mind. He did want to be exclusive, for some reason. Not that she was complaining. The thought of Zoro with another… "As much as I appreciate the offer, I already have a guy waiting for me."

"A shame that all the pretty ones are taken." He kissed her hand. "Well I hope you have a great day today."

"Things seem especially busy. Is something going on? I only just docked this morning."

The store attendant chuckled. "You could say that, though I am surprised you don't know. Today was the day that Gold Roger was executed."

Addy felt her smile waver. Today, that was today. Of all the days to arrive…

"Well thanks for the info," she said turning away to walk out the door.

"Not a problem my dear lady. And if that guy of yours doesn't work out, you'll know where to find me." Addy left the store, the little bell chiming on her way out.

"Well he must be popular," Addy thought as she left the store as a bunch of young women glared at her. All she had to do now was head back to Merry and try to find Nami. Might as well go clothes shopping with her, if only to stop Nami from splurging.

Her thoughts turned back towards today, the anniversary of Gol D Rogers death. Was it fate or chance that they somehow came today of all days? Addy shook her head. There was no point in thinking about it. Chances were that nothing was going to happen today and they would set off just fine. Yet Addy also felt that a storm was brewing, just around the corner.

She navigated her way through the city with ease, sensing out Ocean. Eventually she made her way back to Merry who was bobbing along with another ship. Addy decided to dock away from the town by a rather empty harbor. A pirate flag didn't really bring a welcome wagon. It seemed like Merry was having a conversation with the other ship, telling them about her wacky crew. Addy chuckled before boarding Merry who was too wrapped up in her conversation to notice her.

" _I know right,"_ Merry said. " _It's like they don't even realize._ _Luckily I got a fantastic navigator and helmsman. They have to be the best in all the seas. Yes I am serious. My captain is going to be Pirate King. No mine definitely is. My crew can beat your crew into dust. I have a swordsman who uses three swords. No I am not kidding. You're full of it."_

"What are you talking about Merry?" Addy asked after setting up her telescope in the crows nest and placing the kit in the newly made desk. The glass figures would wait until she got some glue from Usopp. Didn't want those breaking when the sea got rough. Which was going to be happening a lot since they were going to the Grand Line. The seas were surprisingly calm in East Blue.

" _Addy,_ " Merry said. " _The ship next to us is also a pirate's ship. Her crew is currently raiding the food supplies now_."

"Are they?" Addy looked over towards the storage buildings in the far distance through her telescope. Sure enough there was some sort of commotion going on. "Well it doesn't concern us. I'm going to go find Nami."

" _Just be careful, apparently there is a pretty strong Marine base here_."

"Of course there is," Addy muttered. Why wouldn't there be. She took a swig from her flask before putting it back in her bag and heading towards the direction she saw Nami go earlier. Ah well it's probably nothing they couldn't handle. Her more difficult task was going to be trying to find Nami.

"So if I was completely clothes obsessed red head who hoarded money where would I go?" Addy asked herself. Addy had wandered back into town. She looked down one of the streets and saw that it was packed with nothing but the finest clothing stores. "That would be it." She turned the corner and started walking down. The streets were jammed with people. With the anniversary, people probably traveled her as a sort of vacation. Addy wondered if Sarabi and David had started up their yearly memorial service. They should be with Shanks, Rayleigh, Oden, and whoever else from the old crew was still around, which wasn't a lot. Twenty two years had not been kind to the old crew. It wouldn't be much longer until Sarabi, David, and Shanks were the only ones left. Oden was busy ruling Wano country and being a noble Addy did not exactly give him a long life span.

Despite being a day of death, the sun was shining brightly. The air was humid just how she liked it. The wetter the better. She was about to turn down another street when something caught her eye.

Down a rather dark alleyway, Addy could just make out a young man sitting on the ground, his back pressed up against a wall. He was clutching something tightly to his chest and his glasses were askew. She could just make out his olive skin tone and his short limp dark brown hair. Right in front of him was two burly guys who looked like they spent at least a few years in prison. Tattoos, ratty hair, burly muscles, the works. The three of them were talking but Addy could not make out the words. The guy on the ground though. He looked familiar, like she had seen him somewhere before. But where could she has possibly met….

It hit her like a ton of bricks. Unfurling her whip she ran into the alley way, wrapping it around the first one she came to. "Lautan ombak remuk!" she called out smashing into him at full force. It sent him plummeting to the ground.

"What the?" the other guy called out turning to face her. She got the drop on him first. Unwrapping her whip from around the now unconscious guy she crouched and smashed the handle into the second one knee. He let out a howl of pain and grabbed onto his knee. Addy hoped that the sound of the crowds would cover up the fight. She really didn't want to get Marines involved. She would hate trying to explain that one to Nami, or Usopp, or Merry.

"Lautan Pakem!" she said wrapping her whip around the second one and tightening. The whip dug deep into his skin. "Kembali memutar!" She released her whip adding an extra spin on it sending him spinning like a top straight into the trashcans in the back. There was a loud crash and a cat yowl. Well this was going smoothly.

"Thanks for the help," the young man said. His voice was crisp and clear. He fixed his glasses so that they were on straight though Addy could make out a crack in them. "I probably would have been in some trouble if you hadn't shown up. They might have actually broken my glasses."

"Not a problem. You always did manage to find ways to get yourself in trouble Winton," she said.

Winton looked at her strangely, his russet eyes going wide. He pushed himself farther against the wall still clutching the thing he was holding closer to his chest. It looked like some kind of brown package. "How do you know my name? Just who are you? I have a very powerful friend who won't take kindly to you attacking me."

Addy raised an eyebrow. "I guess I shouldn't blame you. I didn't recognize you at first either. It has been a few years."

"A few years? Just who on Earth are you?"

"That is a very good question," a feminine voice from behind Addy said. Her voice was thick and earthy, rhythmic like drums. As Addy began to turn she felt a blade pressed to her neck, keeping her from moving.

"Easy now dear, one false move and I am going to slit your throat." To prove her point she pressed it in cutting softly into Addy's skin. "Now who are you?"

This was not how Addy planned to have her day go but Addy was nothing but flexible.

"I'm hurt," she said in her native tongue. It sounded like water flowing, waves crashing, tides rising and rain falling, yet each word was still clear. "I know it has been a few years but I thought you would remember me."

"Well you seem to know me pretty well," she answered back in the same tongue. Her accent however sounded like soil being turned, the earth shaking, plants growing, rockslides, and flowers blooming. "But I can't place you."

"Let me ask you this, if I wasn't wearing shoes and had a tank top and shorts on, with my hair loose, would you recognize me?"

"No shoes?" The blade vanished from her neck and Addy felt herself being turned. She came face to face with a woman the color of cinnamon. She was slightly shorter than Addy was but way more muscular. She was built like a wall. Nothing could get past her. Her long green strapless dress emphasized that. Her chestnut hair was wrapped in a ponytail and her eyes were so dark they almost looked black, like the color of soil after it rained.

"Adamaris of Delphi," she said clicking her tongue. "What a surprising seeing you here."

"Taryn of Dahvana," Addy replied. "I should be saying that to you."

* * *

Moves:

Lautan ombak remuk- Ocean Waves Smashed

Lautan Pakem- Ocean Grip

Kembali memutar- Return Twist

Review Corner:

Jag- Sort of hence the name Sidetracked. I think I was going for more a slice of life thing with that arc. Addy doesn't get much sleep in general though Zoro really doesn't help things.

NamieKawaiiNeko- I really appreciate this and in some ways it is the first time because it is from Addy's point of view. I just hope I made her interesting enough to carry the story. And thank you for reading the story.

Guest- Questions are good, keep you motivated to keep reading. I will say that some reviewers have gotten the idea behind what Addy is but no one has named her species. And it does have a name, I did not make one up. It just isn't something you would exactly expect in One Piece I think.


	51. Birthplace of a King Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _Okay so this chapter is extremely plot heavy. If stuff doesn't make sense now. It will eventually. Please review and let me know what you think or if you have any questions. I like answering questions. It makes me happy._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Addy," Taryn said embracing her in a hug. "It has been too long my dear."

"It has only been two years," Addy replied wrapping her arms around her. "For us that is basically nothing."

"Says the person who dropped off the face of Earth." Taryn lightly punched her in the shoulder before hugging her again. "I was so happy to hear that you were still alive after everything that had happened. I am so sorry to hear about Riley."

Addy chocked up and clung to Taryn tighter. She started patting Addy on the back. "It has been so hard, Taryn," she mumbled. "Everything reminds me of her."

Taryn let her go but placed her hands on Addy's shoulders. "We so totally got to catch up. You have no idea what you have missed."

"Let me guess, a lot?"

"You have noooooooo idea."

"I think that is a great idea," Winton said pushing his glasses up.

Addy chuckled, "Two years and you still haven't managed to find glasses that fit properly."

"I have tried," Taryn said placing her arm around his shoulders. "But it's like he has an odd shaped head or something."

"Oh, ha, ha," Winton stated rolling his eyes. Addy and Taryn started chuckling.

"Anyway my dear," Taryn said. "I know a great café close by. It has the most amazing salad and Winton says that the crab cakes are to die for."

"Sounds good," Addy replied as Taryn started dragging her off, Winton following behind chuckling.

A couple of blocks later they stopped in front of the café called Good, Green, and Raw. Taryn basically shoved Addy into a seat outside while she went in, probably to order. Winton sat right next to her.

"Hey," he said rubbing the back of his head. "Sorry for not recognizing you."

"It's no worries," Addy replied. "Again it has been a couple of years."

"Yeah, I am just so used to seeing you with Riley, its just…"

A look of absolute despair appeared on Addy's face and she buried her head in her hands.

"Oh Earth I am so sorry," Winton said waving his hands in front of him. "I totally didn't mean… Like…"

"It's alright," Addy said taking a shot out of her flask. "I probably would have been taken aback if I saw Taryn without you."

"Yeah," Taryn said sitting down on Addy other's side. She took Winton hands and held them across the table. "I don't know what I would do if I lost him. To lose my Soul, it's almost unthinkable. To do what you did, for Riley, I couldn't. And to live afterwards…"

"I almost didn't" Addy said as a waiter placed some crabs cakes and tea in front of her. "I should be dead."

"Why aren't you?" Winton asked taking a sip of his tea with his free hand. "Not that I…"

"Honestly," Addy sighed. "I have no idea. I keep expecting that this is all an elaborate dream, that I am going to wake up and find myself dying. Ocean," Addy took another shot before biting into a crab cake. "Most of the time I wish I was."

"What is keeping you going?" Taryn asked taking a forkful of salad. "I would be completely lost."

"I am just keeping the promise that Riley and I made," Addy replied taking another sip of tea. "After that… then I am going to see her again."

"You mean the one where you and Riley promised that you were going to sail with the future Pirate King?" Winton asked. "How is that going?"

"I found him," Addy responded.

"What!" Taryn yelled excitedly taking her hand as well. "That is so exciting. Tell me everything."

Addy swallowed a bit of crab cake. "Okay so have you seen the bounty poster with the guy wearing the straw hat?" The both nodded. "Well that is him."

"You serious?" Taryn asked. Addy nodded. "I mean really serious?"

"Completely."

Taryn giggled squeezing Addy's hand tighter. Addy felt like any harder and her bones would start breaking. "So who else is on your crew?"

"Well besides Captain, there is Roronoa Zoro…"

"I thought he was a bounty hunter," Winton interjected.

"Well he is a pirate now," Addy answered. "Don't ask me how Captain managed to convince him to join but somehow he did. The real kicker is that he is also the first mate."

"Impressive," Taryn said munching on salad. "Continue,"

"Then the next one to join was Usopp, who is a complete coward but also has to be one of the best snipers I have ever met, then I joined…"

"Okay so why did you join," Taryn asked. "It must have taken a lot to convince you."

"Sort of. My locket got stolen and Captain helped me to get it back. The whole crew did actually."

"Wait, hold on," Taryn said holding up her hand. "Your locket got stolen and you didn't go on a murderous rampage to get it back?"

"Oh I tried to, but I was a bit beat up at the time."

"Well you are basically made out of glass, I am surprised strong Wind doesn't blow you away sometimes."

"At least I can move faster than a snail. Tell me did you actually get to fight your last opponent or did they just gently walk away from you?"

"Seaweed brain."

"Rock head."

"Enough," Winton grumbled. "We get it. Your both special in your own way. I get enough of this when we run into Ignacia and Faye."

"Do not bring up Faye," Taryn snipped. "That air head bimbo does not need to be talked about."

"What did she do now?" Addy asked chuckling. Taryn and Faye never got along.

"You mean besides being a waste of space? She and Winry joined the marines."

Addy froze, her gaze grew dark. "Then she is dead then," Addy spat taking another shot. "If I meet her she is dead."

"That is what Ignacia said as soon as airhead told us that was what she was doing. So she and Winry have gone and joined the Marines. They have this elaborate scheme where she is going to try to change the Marines from the inside."

"You cannot change what is corrupt from its very core. It needs to be taken down. All of it."

"Again Ignacia basically said the same thing. She told airhead that if they ever meet again then they would be enemies. She and Roy then went and joined the revolutionaries."

"There revolutionaries now?" Addy raised an eyebrow. "That's interesting. Wasn't expecting that."

"Well after what happened with you and Riley, Ignacia took that hard saying she wasn't going to risk that happening to Roy so they joined the revolutionaries."

"Good for her and Roy. The revolutionaries need all the help they can get." Addy took another bite of crab cake. "So I assume you're still part of your mother's company?"

"Yep, Riches R Us. Providing your raw goods wherever you need," Taryn laughed. "But anyway back to what you were saying. Before we got side tracked."

"Right, so anyway after me came Sanji, who is our cook and a surprisingly kickass fighter and then we have Nami who is one of the most brilliant navigators in the world. And of course we have our sturdy ship, the Going Merry."

"It seems to me your missing a couple of people," Winton pointed out. "A doctor for one."

"Eh were working that out. Captain doesn't let anyone join after all."

"No, just former bounty hunters apparently."

"Alright, now for the juicy stuff," Taryn said rubbing her hands together. "Which one are you sleeping with?"

"What makes you think I am sleeping with any of them?" Addy asked. Taryn gave her the what really look. "Okay, fine. I am sleeping with Zoro."

"Really? Considering your previous fiancée I was suspecting it to be Nami. What happened to her again?"

"To make a long story short, she didn't understand my relationship with Riley. She tried to make me choose."

"She is still alive right?"

"Last time I checked yes."

Taryn whistled, "You got some self-control, which no offensive is rather surprising. If anyone made me choose between them and Winton I would cut them in half." Taryn patted her double edge battle axe that she kept on her back.

"Riley was actually the one who held me back. She thought it would be a bad idea to attack the daughter of a powerful underworld leader. To be fair Riley did have a point."

"I know right. It's annoying when Souls are in the right."

"Yeah," Winton grumbled. "It's like we are trying to keep you from doing stupid things. What could we be possibly thinking?"

"I ask myself that all the time," Taryn said. Winton rolled his eyes and Taryn lightly punched him on the shoulder.

"So anyway," Taryn asked eating the last of her salad. "What were you doing when you ran into Winton?"

"I should be asking what Winton was doing when I ran into him. I was just going to meet one of my nakama."

The two of them stared at her, "You said nakama," Winton stated blinking slowly. "This crew of yours, it's the real thing, isn't it?"

"Without a doubt, but you are dodging the question," Addy remarked.

"Well okay look I was walking down the alleyway minding my own business,"

"What were you doing in an alleyway?" Taryn asked. Her and Addy stared at him hard.

"I might have saw one of the parts that I needed to complete my device," he said sheepishly.

Taryn shook her head. "What am I going to do with you? I was in the store for like a minute."

"Actually it was more like 15."

"You know for a person with a genius level IQ you make some questionable decisions," Addy said. "But please continue."

"So I was in the alleyway fishing out the part when these two morons approach and ask me what is in the bag. I naturally tell them to go screw themselves and leave me in peace."

"Of course you did," Addy said. Taryn groaned.

"They didn't take too kindly to that and tried to take the package from me. So I kicked them in the shins. The oafs reacted by slamming me into the wall and that is when Addy came flying out of nowhere."

"Thank Earth that she did," Taryn said. "Otherwise you might have gotten in serious trouble."

"One question," Addy asked. "What is in the package?"

"Earthen Fabric," Taryn said. "I made been meaning to make myself a new outfit for a while."

"There is a Legacy shop?! Here?!" Addy asked.

"Oh yeah totally, it's just a few blocks down that way." Taryn pointed down the street. "You can't miss it. It is disguised as a tourist trap that sells stuff supposedly from the Grand Line."

Addy jumped out of her chair, "Thanks for letting me know. It's been great seeing you two."

"Don't be a stranger," Taryn said. "Perhaps we will run into each other on the Grand Line. That's where you're headed right?"

"Absolutely, we are going to make it all the way to Raftel."

As Addy walked further up the street she watched as they vanished from sight. It was a surprise to meet them here of all places but a nice one. Her and Taryn got along for the most part, they had their occasional differences. She was also happy to hear that there was a Legacy shop here. Addy suspected there would be one, there usually was in large towns but she would have no idea where to find it. Fortunately for her, Taryn did. Good news all around.

As she was walking through the streets she spotted Sanji, who was kneeling in front of a woman, with a rose in his mouth, the sap. However she apparently wasn't the woman he was looking for and he dropped the rose in surprise

"You know Sanji that doesn't work for everyone," Addy said as the woman walked away.

Sanji turned to face her, "Ah my dear Addy sweet, how have you been doing? Shopping going well?"

"I have been doing great, I actually just ran into an old friend not that long ago. How has your luck been? Got your supplies?"

"Well you see…" Sanji rubbed the back of his head.

Addy chuckled. "Okay look, I am going to give you some advice. Woman like it when a guy is extremely skilled at something, particularly something useful, like cooking." Sanji was looking at her wide eyed as if the Gods themselves were speaking. "So why don't you head to the market and see if you can demonstrate any of your skills. Perhaps you could help a nice young lady with her shopping."

"That is a fabulous idea Addy sweet," Sanji gushed. "You are truly a wonderful woman." He then rushed off towards the market to put Addy idea into action. It was also then that Addy noticed Usopp standing in front of a table piled high with massive amounts of junk. This must be the place. Addy had no idea why Usopp was buying from here but perhaps he needed something for one of his inventions. There seemed to be a lot of that going around. Apparently he needed a lot judging from how much was in his bag.

"Oi Usopp," Addy called out.

"Addy," he replied. "Check out all this neat stuff." He pointed to various widgets and doodads. Addy wasn't not seeing what he was seeing.

"Right, anyway I am going to step into the store for a bit. I will come find you when I am done. It might be awhile."

"Certainly. I want this one as well!" He told the store attendant standing by him. Addy walked into the store. A man with a rather thin wispy mustache was standing by the front counter.

"Ah my lady, what can I do for you," he asked. This guy was slick, Addy would give him that. "We have stuff from all over the Grand Line."

"I am more interested in your exotic goods," she said drumming her fingers against the counter. "After all the Gods have deemed you worth to carry on their Legacy."

The shopkeeper suddenly shifted into a different person. His back straightened and he looked her dead in the eye.

"What family?" he asked.

"Delphi," Addy responded.

"Mm, don't see many of you often. You normally stick to the Grand Line." He walked towards the back and beckoned Addy to follow him. In the back of the shop in the darkest corner was a red curtain. He pushed it open revealing another store all together. "Take whatever you need and leave payment in the jar. I assume you know the drill."

"Completely." Addy stepped behind the curtain and it swished closed behind her. He was probably going to go back to swindling other customers. Including most likely Usopp. Not that she could do much about it. It was a bad idea to get on the wrong side of a Legacy store owner.

Addy took a look in front of her. The shelves were full of items that humans or other mortals would have no idea what to do with. Addy grinned. This was going to be fun.


	52. Birthplace of a King Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _Writing Loguetown has been fun so far. I really enjoy this arc. I sort of wish One Piece had more arcs like this one, where the Straw Hats wander around a town and do stuff. We have post Enies Lobby but its not the same. But I suppose that is what fanfics are for. Anyway as always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Sweet, this guy actually has water proof bandages," Addy said, adding those to her ever growing basket of stuff. This place was a treasure trove. So far she had managed to find more water proof clothing, of several varieties, as well as extra bolts of sea king leather so she can make her own, or repair what she had. Maybe Nami will now get off her back about clothes shopping. Who was she kidding, Nami would never get off her back. Considering that everything she was buying was some shade of blue or white. Oh, never mind, she had a silver top somewhere in the pile and a few more tan belts. That should count as diversity and it wasn't her fault that when Sea King leather was processed it turned blue. Somehow she wasn't sure that Nami was going to buy that. Heck if she didn't know any better she was sure she wouldn't buy it either.

Stopping in front of another shelf, she saw that it was lined with various sized boxes. Picking one up she gently opened it and a tune began to play. Something sweet and melodious, though Addy could not place where it was from.

"A music box?" Addy asked placing it back on the shelf. She picked up the one next to it and it played a more upbeat tune. Several music boxes later she finally found the perfect one. It was a small plain black box with a silver latch. The only decoration was engraved on the lid. It was a simple curved sea shell. Opening it up it started playing a version of We Are. Ocean, Addy had not heard that song in a while. She closed it and opened it again though this time it started playing the tune of Believe. Addy smiled and placed that in the basket with all her other stuff. Merry would enjoy it. She wasn't exactly sure why it was here but she was glad that it was. Heck she wasn't even fully sure what it was. Magical music boxes were not something she was an expert at. Only thing she did know for sure was that it wasn't cursed. She wondered how many songs it could play. That will be fun to figure out. Though it would probably be wise to keep it out of Luffy's hands. Who knows what he could do with it. Most likely nothing good.

She continued to looking around, seeing if there was anything else she needed. Addy wouldn't be back to a Legacy shop for a while. Might as well grab what she can.

Five books in two different languages, a waterproof blanket, several more packages of bandages, numerous tubes of ointment, a couple more bundles of clothes, including a few dresses, and a bunch of other useful items, Addy felt that she was about done. Maybe… okay not so much. She did have shelves to fill after all. Addy could have stayed in here all day but that wouldn't exactly be conducive, to well anything. Maybe she was like Usopp. Like she really didn't need another pair of shoes, she didn't even wear shoes. But these ones were waterproof so she could wear them in the shower. Not that she took showers all that often, preferring to just jump into Ocean but if she wanted to she can now wear shoes. She also didn't need several pairs of sea shell earnings, but she would never get this style anywhere else. Plus she could use it as an example for her own. She could make a killing. Nami would be happy. Besides she didn't want to sail the entire way to Raftel completely broke. It would be sort of ironic though, to sail under the Pirate King and not have two beli to rub together. Not for the first time, she wished Sarabi told her what the One Piece actually was, or even if it existed. It was the only thing she was tight lipped about. And David couldn't be pressured to tell her either and he was even more tight lipped than Sarabi was.

Addy finally managed to pull herself away from the store, leaving the money and a note with a blessing written on it in a glass jar. It was the least she could do though she wondered how much it would help. Blessings, like most other things weren't exactly her strong suit. She was good at them but her strengths laid on the other side of the spectrum.

She gave a nod to the shop keep as she left. Addy briefly glanced around and noticed that Usopp had left. Probably got sidetracked about something. He did have a bit of a scatter brain. Ah well, might as well go find him. Wasn't like she had anything else to do.

Carrying her many bags, she wandered back down the streets of Loguetown. It was still crowded despite it being later in the day. Judging from the sun it was roughly noon. Just how long did she spend in that store? She overheard some people talking about some fight by the execution platform with smoke, as well as some sort of fake out duel. Addy sighed, she hoped it wasn't Luffy they were talking about. They should probably stop having wander around islands unsupervised.

Walking through the outskirts of town she found herself moving past a cemetery. It was nestled on a hill giving her a great overlook of the town. She caught the smell of a warm Ocean breeze. Up here it was much quieter than in the busting town. This place was nice. Addy thought it was a shame that they couldn't spend very long here. They sorted needed a vacation. Perhaps a day on the beach or something. That would be pleasant. A nice relaxing day at the beach before they headed into the Grand Line where she didn't have to worry about things. Like keeping everyone alive.

It was then that she spotted Usopp and Nami as well as two other people. One was a little blond girl in a fancy dress, while the other was a tall man with a lean build. He had large sideburns, a mustache and a goatee. The two of them were standing by Usopp who looked like he was aiming at something with his slingshot. A weather vane? Why was he shooting a weather vane?

Addy waved at Nami, not wanting to disturb Usopp. Luckily Nami saw her and beckoned her to come forward.

"What is going on?" Addy whispered.

"That's Daddy Masterson," Nami whispered back pointing towards the tall man.

"Who?"

"The Marine sharpshooter? He is famous. How have you not heard of him?"

"Surprisingly I don't know everyone. Unless he has been in the Grand Line I have no clue who he is. Also did you say Marine?"

"Former Marine. Anyway that's not the point. He challenged Usopp to a match. If Usopp can hit that weather vane from this far away than he will give Usopp the googles."

"And if Usopp fails?"

"Then he will shoot Usopp straight through the heart."

"So you're telling me that Usopp challenged this supposedly extremely powerful sniper, on a life or death bet, over some googles?" Addy placed her bags down and face palmed. Her crew were idiots sometimes. Not that she would give this Daddy person a chance to hit Usopp. He would taste her whip before he had the chance to pull the trigger. She took a shot out of her flask and placed her hand on her whip. Might as well prepare for the worst-case scenario.

It was then that Usopp released his slingshot. The ball seemed to be going in slow motion until it disappeared from sight. It seemed like everyone was holding their breath, waiting for the result. Even Addy was tense and she only just got here.

"You missed!" Nami exclaimed.

"He did?" Addy asked. "I can't tell." She really couldn't. Her above water vision was pretty poor. She was honestly surprised she could make out the weather vane. It looked like some kind of dolphin, or shark or something. It was blue, she was pretty sure about that.

"No, Papa!" The girl cried out, stepping in between Usopp and Daddy. "Don't shoot him! Papa!" Addy decided that she liked this kid. She had spirit. Plus she was defending Usopp. That alone put her in Addy's good books.

"I can't shoot him," Daddy said. "Usopp shot right through its crown!"

As soon as she heard that Addy rooted through her bags and got out her new mini telescope, with an extra zoom feature, due to the volcanic glass placed inside. She handed it to Nami since she would have the better eyesight. She eagerly grabbed at it and looked through to the weather vane that Usopp hit.

"H-He really did!" Nami stated. "Right through the crown!"

"Of course he did," Addy said clapping Usopp on the shoulder. "He is the Straw Hat sniper after all."

"Usopp!" the girl shouted.

Usopp collapsed on the ground apparently from shock of having actually made the shot. He was trembling and it seemed like he was a million miles away.

"You're an excellent shot," Daddy said. "I'd expect no less from Yasopp's son. Never forget that bravery. Someday you will become like your father!"

"Wait you're Yasopp's son?" Addy asked surprised. Though honestly, she should have figured it out. The two did look oddly similar, with the exception of the nose. Usopp must have gotten it from his mother.

"You know Yasopp but not Daddy Masterson," Nami stated raising an eyebrow at her.

"Of course, I have met Yasopp several times. Really fun guy. Can't lie to save his life. Also one of the best snipers I have ever met."

Nami shook her head, "Sometimes I don't know what to do with you."

"Go to the Grand Line," Daddy said. He was still talking to Usopp. "I'm certain Yasopp is there."

"Daddy," Usopp murmured.

The little girl ran up to Usopp and handed him what looked like a pair of googles. So that is what this challenge was all about. "You're pretty good, old man!" the girl said.

"Aren't these?"

"It's okay! So long!" The girl and her father started to walk away, back in the direction that Addy came from.

"Well that was interesting," Addy stated. "Though I am not really sure how it all got started. Nor am I sure that I want to know."

"Addy!" Usopp exclaimed. He was still on the ground. "When did you get here?"

"You only just noticed," Addy said, helping him up. "Right when you were taking the shot." She bonked him on the head. "That was for leaving me in the store and having me come find you." She bonked him again. "That is for challenging some guy way above your pay grade."

"Alright, ow, I'm sorry, just stop hitting me," Usopp stated waving his arms in front of him.

"Even when people say he's a disgrace behind his back now," Nami said. Addy turned to face her. She was still talking about this Daddy guy. "He's fought all this time to protect the one he loves."

"I'm going to be a brave man like Daddy, too!" Usopp remarked. "I'm gonna become a real warrior and stand before my dad someday! I'm certain of this."

"Considering he belongs to the same crew Shanks does, I am certain of this as well," Addy stated. "Though we probably won't run into them until after Captain becomes Pirate King."

"That just gives me time to become a brave warrior of the sea," Usopp grinned.

Addy chuckled. "That it will. Though I am curious about something."

"What is it," Nami asked.

"What kind of parent would name their kid Daddy?"

Usopp and Nami stared at her for a moment.

"You know what," Ussop said. "I actually have no idea."

"I guess it doesn't really matter," Addy stated. "We should probably go find the others."

"Probably," Nami said. "It is getting rather late." The sun was starting to get lower in the sky. It had to be late afternoon. Addy really should have bought a pocket watch. That would have been useful.

"I sent Sanji to the market when I ran into him, so he should be there," Addy stated. "Luffy and Zoro I have no idea. Captain could have started a war with the Marines. And considering Zoro could get lost walking in a straight line, he could be on the other side of the island as far as I know."

"Eh, will find them eventually," Nami responded stretching her arms and picking her bags back up. Addy did the same as well as Usopp, picking his stuff off the ground. His backpack was absolutely stuffed. Just how much did he buy? "Those two can take care of themselves. Let's go find Sanji."

"I think the market is that way." Addy pointed in the opposite direction where she came from. "It's close to the docks and they are in that direction."

"Sounds good to me," Nami said starting in that direction. Addy and Usopp followed her, trusting her sense of direction more than their own. Nami would not get them lost. Well except for that one time, when they were trying to find the Bandit King. But Addy won't hold that against her, considering they were all idiots in that instance.

"Hey Addy," Usopp asked. "Where did you get all this stuff?" He was rummaging through her bags and she swatted his hand away.

"I would love to tell you but unfortunately I can't," Addy replied grinning. "It is a sort of secret."

"You seem to have a lot of those," Usopp grumbled.

"For a reason. I don't hide things because I think it is fun."

"You sure about that?" Nami asked.

Addy rolled her eyes. "Pretty sure, at least 99%."

"99%" Usopp asked.

"There is always a margin of error," Addy answered. The three of them had walked back into town and were in the thick of things. Getting to the market was actually harder than Addy thought it would be. Perhaps they should go to Merry first to drop off all their stuff and then go look for their wayward nakama. Knowing Addy's luck she would probably get lost looking for them. She was starting to feel a bit closed in. The people, the noise, the smells, it was all a barrage against her senses. Addy felt a slight headache coming on so she took another shot. That did not help matters in the slightest.

"Addy you okay?" Nami asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just don't do well in cities," she answered rubbing her forehead.

"Another mystery to the pile," Usopp stated. Addy gave him a grin. "Someday I am going to figure out what you are."

"You work on that," Addy replied throwing her arm around Usopp. "In the meantime, why don't we work on another mystery. Where the heck our missing crew are?"

"I think I know the answer to that," Nami added in. She pointed to a poster on the wall.

Addy looked at it and had to suppress a sign. Of course, out of all the days, it was the day they got here that there had to be a cooking competition.

* * *

Jag- The puzzle will eventually come together. Taryn and Winton are fun though at this point they leave more of a mystery than answer questions but you are sort of on the right track with an elemental vibe. It will all be revealed soonish.


	53. Birthplace of a King Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _So yeah this chapter. I think someone was looking forward to this chapter. I did enjoy writing it. I should write more with Addy and Sanji. The two of them are a good pair together. Anyway as always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"So now that we know where Sanji is going to be at, do we want to find the others?" Addy asked.

"Why do you think Sanji would participate?" Usopp asked. Addy raised an eyebrow and gave him a 'what really' look.

"Regardless, I would much rather check out this cooking show," Nami said. "It seems like it could be entertaining, much more so than searching for those idiots."

Addy let out a small grin. Seems like someone likes the cook.

"What are you grinning about?" Nami snapped at her.

Addy chuckled. "Oh nothing. Why don't we go watch Sanji. I am sure he is going to put on an amazing show. He normally does. He has a sort of flair for the dramatic. Where did it say it was being held?"

Nami shot her a glare but continued leading them forward. Usopp looked confused at the entire situation.

"Is this a girl thing?" he whispered to Addy. "Because I don't get it."

"There is nothing to get," Addy whispered back. "Everything is cool."

"Riiiiiiight."

As they got closer to the market and the docks, Addy headache started to cease. Being close to Ocean helped. She could smell the scent of fish in the air. Its wafting aromas made Addy lick her lips. She could almost taste it in the air. A lot of the smells she didn't recognize. Must be fish from East Blue then. It was one of the reason why she was excited to go back to the Grand Line. She missed the fish from there. There was just something about fish from the Grand Line that made her mouth water more than any other sea.

"Look like we found it," Nami said pointing to a large red banner that read Cooking in Loguetown Championship. "Now come on and hurry up! I don't want to be stuck in the back!"

The three of them pushed themselves to the front of the crowd, despite some of the grumblings that people were giving them. Right in front of them was a magnificent stage where cooking equipment was set up on either side. In the middle was this ginormous fish which Addy assumed was the grand prize. It looked amazing and the smell coming off of it was heavenly. Sanji better win this. She wanted that fish.

"Now, the annual Cooking Championship festivities are about to start!" the announcer yelled from a booth not far away from the stage. He looked like he was half fishman and half human. "We have famous cooks from around the East Blue gathered here!"

"What a crowd," Nami stated looking all around them.

"I know, this must be a really big deal," Addy replied. Kinda odd that they hold it on the day of Roger's death, but people were strange like that.

"This year's prize is an elephant bluefin tuna!" the announcer called out. "It's a treasure of the ocean and miracle food! Who will earn the 'East Blue's No. 1' title and win the elephant bluefin tuna?!"

"Elephant bluefin tuna?" Addy stated. "I would kill to sink my teeth into that."

"It does look good doesn't it," Nami added in.

"All I can say is that Sanji better win."

"Speaking of Sanji," Nami said pointing towards the contestants. "There he is."

Sure enough Sanji was there among the other contestants. It seemed like he was being pushed away from a woman with fiery pink hair in a dark red flamenco dress with white frills. Addy assumed that the people doing the pushing were her assistants, though Addy wasn't a 100% sure since the assistances looked like badly made toy soldiers who came to life and grew to the size of humans. Sanji probably tried putting the moves on her. Addy sighed. Well it could be worse. He could have been beaten up by a frying pan.

"Hey, hey!" Usopp called out waving to Sanji trying to get his attention.

"Sanji-kun," Nami yelled out.

That got his attention. "Nami dear, Addy sweet!" Sanji yelled back. "You came to give me your support?!" He glided over to them in a way that Addy thought wouldn't be possible. But somehow he managed.

"Not really," Nami said grinning. "I was just passing by."

"Don't be mean," Addy stated. "We came by because this seemed like something better to do than search for the other two."

"But why in the heck are you participating in a competition like this?" Usopp asked.

"Oh, Usopp." Sanji said. "I didn't realize you were here." Nami and Addy both sweat dropped.

"I was the one who called out to you first!" Usopp yelled at him.

"Now it's time to start the championship," the announcer called out. "These're the judges!" Addy glanced over them. They seemed like normal people, at least two chefs were in the mix. So Sanji should win this hands down then. There was also this weird guy who was looking around absolutely confused as if he had been kidnapped and placed there. "Also, to be fair, we asked Sam, a member of the general audience on his way home from a wedding party, to join the judges!" Well that solved that mystery. "Are you ready Sam?! Sam?!"

"Let's go!" Sam yelled out throwing a fist in the air.

"The rules are simple. First each cook will compete against another. Whoever receives a higher total score from the judges wins. And whoever remains undefeated through all the matches will be the East Blue's glorious No.1 cook! " It was essentially a tournament then. Addy could get behind this. "Well then, we'll now start the first round! The first match is Shoo the Lizard from the easternmost extremity versus Eoccoli, representing Loguetown." Neither of these guys looked like they could boil water, much less an elaborate meal. Those appearances could always be deceiving. "Now, ready… Start!" The announcer banged a ladle against a pot and the match began.

"What, Sanji?" Usopp asked. "You're interested in becoming the East Blue's No.1?"

"Don't be stupid," Sanji replied. Really? Perhaps Addy had misjudged him. "It's nothing like that. I just want to cook that fish." He pointed towards the large elephant blue fin tuna.

"Fish?"

"Oh yeah, that fish does look different from the others," Nami pointed out.

"Smells differently too," Addy added in.

"Though that fish's secrets can't be obtained so easily," Sanji stated. He didn't elaborate further and instead went to join the other competitors. The matches quickly flew by and the air filled with the scent of food and cheering crowd. Sanji was doing spectacularly but so was the woman from earlier. She might actually give him a challenge. Though she was a lot showier than Sanji was. Addy wasn't sure how that was possible but it clearly was.

"And at last the final match!" the announcer called out. The crowd roared back. This was a lot more exciting than Addy thought it would be.

"Hey, people are really excited!" Usopp pointed out.

"Yeah!" Nami replied.

"I know right," Addy said knocking back another shot. What was a competition without alcohol? "It's almost like there is nothing else to do in this town."

"With his remarkable cooking sense and skills, Sanji won through to the final!" the announcer called out. The three Straw Hats cheered. "With her gorgeous dance and cooking skills, Carmen has kept crushing others! Which one will win the glorious elephant bluefin tuna?!" Well it looks like Carmen since Sanji has clearly gone goo goo eyes for her. Addy really needed to teach him about standards, namely how to get some. "The anticipated final match starts now!"

If the other matches were exciting this one took the cake. Carmen started rising and cutting up vegetables with her usual enthusiasm.

"There she goes!" the announcer pointed out. "Carmen's cooking looks showy at first glance, but what she is doing is actually quite simple." Yeah peeling carrots. Addy was certain that even Luffy could do that without screwing it up… too much. "Also her opponents get confused by those two in front and lose their place." Sure enough, her assistants were there performing what looked like an interpretative dance by drunks. Where did she find them? At the circus?

"But how is Sanji doing?" The announcer called out. The crowd switched their attention to Sanji who was busy slicing up fish. He was completely in the zone. "He's not affected!"

"Of course not," Addy stated somewhat proudly. "With everything that happens on Merry, that little show is nothing."

"Got that right!" Usopp said. "Go Sanji!"

"Far from that, he's exhibiting amazing knife skills!" the announcer yelled. The three of them were vibrating with excitement. Sanji was killing this. "Contender Sanji is silently proceeding with the preparation at his own pace!" Addy was entirely sure what he was doing, something with eggs, but that could be a lot of things. He seemed like he was lost in his own world, though he was still going through the motions of cooking, picking a potato out of the bag. Whatever he was thinking about seemed to have inspired him, as the pan he was using spontaneously caught on fire. Addy hoped it was supposed to do that.

"Now it looks like Sanji is starting to finish up!" the announcer called out. "Carmen is also close to the end! Looks like all she has to do is dish it out! The championship is reaching a climax. Who will win the elephant bluefin tuna?!" Both of their cooking skills were pushed to the max. They were doing things that Addy could only dream of accomplishing. "The decision… will be made soon!" The crowd burst out cheering again as the steaks Sanji flipped in the air landed perfectly on the plates.

"He did it!" the crowd yelled out.

"Damn right he did!" Addy shouted. "Because he is our cook!"

"Contender Sanji completed it!" the announcer stated. It was true. Before Sanji were several carefully prepared dishes that would have maybe gotten a compliment from Zeff. "And here is Contender Carmen! Looks like she's completed it, too! The dishes are complete now! Who will win the crown?!"

"SANJI," the three of them yelled though it was covered up by the screams of the crowd. If it wasn't for the fact that they were close to Ocean Addy was pretty sure her head would have exploded by now. It took far too long for the judges to taste each one of the dishes. Addy felt like everyone else was going to die of old age before they reached a decision.

Finally one of the judges stood up, holding a piece of paper in his hands. The crowd collectively held their breath, waiting to hear who had won.

"Well then, here goes," the judge said. "The winner of this year's Cooking Championship is San…"

"Wait!" Carmen yelled out. The crowd swiftly turned towards her. Addy could here sounds of surprise echoing through the crowd. She stood up from her chair and walked over to Sanji. This could be either really good or really bad for him.

"I can't forgive…" she said softly though everyone could hear her. If someone dropped a pin, Addy was sure that even she could hear it. "I can't forgive myself!"

"What?!" the crowd collectively said.

"I always wanted to compete against you someday. So I've trained liked crazy!" Does she actually know him? "I wanted to be on a level with you." Her shoulders were shaking and it almost looked like she was about to burst into tears. "But ten years later your dream hasn't changed!" Was Addy the only won who didn't know what Sanji's dream was? That had to be rectified. "I can't forgive myself for being stupid enough to think that I could defeat you. You win…. Your dishes are delicious. You're the No.1 cook in the East Blue, Sanji."

Sanji got up then and turned to face Carmen. "Oh… To think that Carmen dear is giving me such a compliment." His arms were wide open as if he was about to embrace her. "I'm so happy!" One of her assistants then smacked him in the face with a frying pan. Sanji then sent him flying with a kick. "What'd you do that for?!" he yelled out, his face all red. There was a crash as the assistant was sent flying into several pots and pans. Cooking competitions were exciting.

"I'll withdraw for now, but be prepared when we meet next time!" Carmen stated. "I definitely won't lose."

"We are probably never going to see her again," Addy stated. Nami and Usopp nodded.

"Yeah, if it's a challenge from you, I'll happily accept it any time," Sanji responded.

"The winner is contender Sanji!" The announcer yelled. Once again the crowd burst into applause. They handed him his fish and he held it up with both hands. The crowd cheered and the Straw Hats cheered along with them. Soon however the crowd started to disperse and Sanji jumped down to join them.

"Shall we head back to the ship my lovelies, Usopp?" Sanji asked.

"We should indeed," Addy responded starting to head back towards Merry.

"Usopp help me carry this fish," Sanji said handing the head of it to Usopp."

"Eh, why should I carry it?!"

"You think I am going to make one of the ladies do it?!"

Usopp grumbled but complied taking the head of the fish and slinging it over his shoulder while Sanji carried the tail.

"Ah! That was fun!" Nami stated as they were walking down the street. "I don't know why but today was a day of face-offs."

"Hopefully no more happen," Addy said. "We should only cause so much chaos."

"Hey," Usopp called out. "Why am I carrying the heavier part?!"

"Well an elephant bluefin tuna, huh?" Sanji muttered completely ignoring Usopp. "I wonder what it tastes like. Looks like I can use the fins for making stock. What can I use the ear areas for?"

"Fry them," Addy said to him. "It gives large fish a nice crunchy flavor plus it allows the taste to just explode in one's mouth."

"Great idea Addy sweet," Sanji responded. "You have the best ideas. Ahhh! I can't wait to cook it!"

"Hm?" Nami said stopping.

"What's the matter, Nami?" Usopp asked.

Nami turned towards her. "Addy do you feel that?"

Addy stopped for a moment and took in her surroundings, feeling the moisture in the air around her. "Oh yeah," she responded. "I feel it."

"It'll rain," Nami stated.

"And it is going to rain hard."

"Huh? When the weather is nice like this?" Usopp asked skeptical.

"Oh yeah," Addy said. "I can feel it building. Nice job Nami. I would have completely missed it until it was right on top of us."

"Honestly," she huffed. "It would do you some good to pay attention to these sorts of things considering your talent. You could probably feel a storm from miles away."

"I wouldn't go that far. You by far have better senses than I do."

Nami grinned at her. "Anyway, there's no doubt about it. Let's hurry." Nami started speeding walking to Merry and the rest of them followed her lead. It wouldn't be good for most of them to be caught in the rain.

* * *

blackcat711- Yeah because it was totally my intention to have a Fullmetal Alchemist reference... But honestly it has been awhile since I seen that so one might have slipped in unnoticed by me. I am actually thinking about writing a fic based on the 2009 series but this beast is taking up most of my writing time. Will see though.

Jag- That is actually Addy's excuse for the most part when the time comes. Addy and Taryn are both based on creatures, however I did take some creative liberties with them. You will have to wait and see. :)


	54. Birthplace of a King Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _I think I wrote this chapter twice and I am still not fully happy with it. We are almost done with this arc and the next one looks promising. I am sort of happy to be wrapping up Loguetown. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

They picked up speed slightly but they were still taking their time. Right now there was no need to rush. It would be awhile before the rain came though Addy could not be sure. Storms were more her great grandmother's thing and since she had been dead for 10 years now, Addy couldn't exactly ask her for advice. Heck even if she was alive Addy wouldn't go asking her for advice. Calypso wasn't exactly the friendliest person and that was saying a lot, considering that her mother, Sarabi, was known as the Ice Queen for more than one reason. Once they got the stuff on Merry, Addy would go looking for the other two. She hoped they hadn't gotten into any trouble. After all Luffy just wanted to go see the execution platform and Zoro went to go buy swords. What was the worst that could happen?

The clouds were coming in and Addy could hear the distant sounds of thunder. Turns out they had less time than she thought. They all stopped in their tracks and watched the weather for a moment. It almost seemed like the clouds were circling the city.

"The atmospheric pressure is dropping abnormally," Nami said looking at one of her many weather devices. "I've never seen such a bizarre drop before."

"Wait you mean this isn't normal?" Addy asked. Maybe East Blue weather was weirder than she thought. It did tend to be a lot more stable than she was used to.

"No, it isn't," Nami replied.

"Now that you mention it, I feel a strange wind," Sanji stated.

"Addy you were right. A storm is coming, to this island!"

"A-A storm?" Usopp said looking startled.

"We better get to the Merry then and hunker down," Addy said. "We can sail when the storm clears up."

Nami nodded. "We'd better hurry back to the ship or we'll be in trouble."

"Is it a pretty big one?" Usopp asked.

Addy nodded. "This isn't going to be pretty."

"Oi," Zoro called out. Well that was easy. The four of them turned towards the swordsman. Addy noticed that he had two more swords on his hip, right next to the white one. Mission accomplished then. However Addy felt something strange coming from one of them, a sort of dark energy. Filled to the brim with blood lust. Of course Zoro would pick up a cursed sword. Why wouldn't he? He was rubbing the back of his head in confusion "Have you seen him?"

"You mean Luffy?" Usopp asked.

"Yeah, we got separated." So he got lost then. "I also feel something strange." He started looking around as if expecting some to jump out at him. "Like something terrible is about to happen." Addy was starting to feel that too and it was more than just the storm. Something more was brewing in the air. She could taste blood on the tip of her tongue. Black clouds started to rise above the city and Addy knew that they were running out of time.

"Pirates are here!" A voice shouted.

"Pirates are here!" A different voice called out.

"Run!"

"It's Buggy the Clown!" A crowd of people ran right in front of them, clearly trying to get away from something.

"What?!" Nami stated surprised.

"Buggy the Clown!" Zoro said taken slightly aback.

"Right, you ran into him before," Addy said. She actually remembered who he was now. For an old apprentice of Roger he hadn't amounted to much. "Is he much of a threat?"

"Not really," Zoro replied. "More of a nuisance than anything."

"Then you and Sanji go check out what is going on. I'm the only one who can sail us out of here once the storm hits. Besides somehow I have a feeling that Captain is also in the middle of it." The clouds were starting to get worse and the rumbling was getting louder. She could feel the moisture in the air beginning to build up.

"Luffy can handle himself against Buggy," Zoro stated.

"Zoro is right, Luffy will be fine," Nami added in. Addy still felt unsure though she didn't have any concrete proof.

"An execution!" another voice yelled. "An execution will start! Buggy the Clown will be executing Straw Hat Luffy!" Addy paled when she heard that and she went straight to her flask, taking a shot.

"Luffy's gonna be executed?!" Usopp shouted.

"That idiot!" Nami stated.

"You sure you don't want to check it out?!" Addy said at Zoro.

Zoro didn't even bother to retort, and just started running in the direction the crowd was coming from. "Let's go," Zoro yelled at Sanji.

"Take care of this!" Sanji told Usopp throwing the tuna at him before the two of them took off to the main part of the town. Usopp stumbled around a bit, trying to balance the massively large fish.

"S-S-S-Sanji!" Usopp shouted.

"Treat it like a lady!" Sanji responded. "Got that?!" He and Zoro then disappeared down the street, hopefully to get Luffy out of whatever mess he was in. It was also the direction where the black clouds were forming. Nothing good was going to come out of this. They probably should have never come and gone to some other city in East Blue. Just because Addy had never been to another city in East Blue didn't mean that they didn't exist.

"We have to hurry, too!" Nami said grabbing Usopp and starting to drag him along.

"Hey!" he stated. "Hey, Nami! Where're we going?!"

"The harbor, of course!"

"H-Harbor? Oh yeah, of course!"

"Your brain must be pretty rattled," Addy said checking to make sure that he was doing alright. That fish was huge. Unfortunately, the clouds had started to roll over their position and Wind was starting to pick up. Addy could feel a chill starting to set in. Once it started raining though then she would be okay. For the others it would be a bit of a problem. Not that they needed another one. However they seemed to attract problems. If Addy didn't know better she would say that they were cursed.

Soon the sky was nothing but black. This is the first time Addy had seen this in East Blue and that made her extremely nervous. She took a shot out of her flask, trying to calm down her nerves. She would feel better once they were all back on the Merry safe and sound. Everything would be good. They would gather in the lounge as Sanji made some tea. They would laugh at Luffy antics, listen to Addy's new music box. It would all be good. The three of them were running now, trying to reach the harbor before the rain started to fall.

I saw a big cumulus cloud in the eastern sky," Nami said. "A storm is coming. An unimaginably big storm. If Buggy, Luffy and the others go crazy, the Navy will come out."

"Ocean!" Addy spat. "I forgot that there was a Marine base here."

"We're done for if the ship is washed out to sea when we have to get out of here. Unless… Addy if that happens could you swim out and get the ship?"

"Oh yeah. It wouldn't be that much of an issue. I would just prefer if I didn't have to do that. Particularly since that potentially means leaving you guys would have to hold off both pirates and Marines."

"Let's make sure that doesn't happen," Usopp gulped. "You can sail in this storm right?"

Addy turned her head to face him and grinned. "Don't insult me. Like I have said, I am without a doubt, the best helmsman you are going to meet. This storm will be simple. Particularly since we have a tail wind."

"You're right. We do. However the Navy may have already started taking action," Nami added in. "The Going Merry is in danger!"

"Th-The Going Merry will be in the Navy's hands?" Usopp asked.

"If they touch one plank of hers than they are dead," Addy growled. "I am not going to let them lay a single finger on our Merry."

"H-Hey, Nami! Addy! Hurry up!" Usopp shouted running ahead of them. Damn, he could be fast when he wanted to be. Addy sped up as well soon matching Usopp pace. Time was of the essence.

"Wait for me!" Nami cried out. She also started running faster though not quite as fast as Addy and Usopp. Though to be fair, not many people could run as fast as her and Usopp. Or Sanji for that matter. With those legs of his the guy must be a speed demon.

The three of them were racing towards Merry, hoping that they would get there in time. Usopp and Nami were arguing about how heavy the bags were. Or rather Usopp was arguing. Despite the seriousness of the situation those two were always able to engage in banter.

"Addy?" Usopp asked. "You think that you could help me carry this?"

"No…" she responded. "I got enough stuff as it is."

"But it is really heavy. And you're the one who is most likely going to eat it anyone." He paused for a second. "I mean after Luffy of course."

"Can you imagine the look on Sanji face if Luffy ate the entire thing and didn't let anyone else have any?"

"He might actually kill him."

The two of them chuckled while Nami rolled her eyes fondly.

Suddenly Addy felt like the world had collapsed before her eyes. She almost stopped dead in her tracks. Her heart beat was racing and she felt like she could scream out in pain and anguish. What was going on? Yet she kept on running, draining her flask of all its contents. Her heart was pounding and felt her blood rush through her veins. Something bad had happened something really, really bad.

Then there was this big flash of blueish light behind them. Lighting had struck. The thunderous boom echoed. Addy was pretty sure it was the loudest she ever heard. She was half tempted to cover her ears. The lighting even electrified the air all the way to where they were. Yet at the same time, the sense of dread had disappeared and she felt herself grow lighter. Well whatever that was she was glad that it had passed.

It was then it started raining, Addy could feel the drops as they glided down and rolled off her body. They were light at first but then started to become heavier and soon it was an absolute downpour. The rain invigorated her, moving more energy into her limbs. Right now that was something she really needed.

Lighting was striking all over the place now and she could hear the claps of thunder. It sounded like it was coming from right above them. Addy was shaken her too her core. The rain was absolutely pelting them now and Addy could see that Usopp and Nami were getting soaked to the bone yet they still kept going. Despite what they sometimes thought of themselves, those two were strong. They all were and they were going to have to be to make it on the Grand Line. And they are only going get stronger, a lot stronger before they reach the end, before they reached Raftel.

"ADDY!" Nami yelled at her.

Addy snapped out of her daze, "Yes? What is it?"

"Give me your bags."

"….What?"

Nami sighed. "Look, out of the three of us you're the best fighter. But you can't exactly move with all the stuff you are carrying. If the Marines beat us there then you need to take care of them. So give me your bags."

Addy tossed each one to Nami and she caught them deftly, carrying them alongside her own. Somehow nothing fell out of the bags. Once again Nami proved how strong she really was, in more ways than one. That would help her in life, it would help all of them. Addy now free of her burden could actually move faster. She took the lead, keeping a few steps ahead of Usopp and Nami but making sure they weren't too far behind. She would not let a nakama die today. Not right before the Grand Line. They still had so much they need to accomplish. And they can only do that with Merry. Addy placed her hand on her whip, ready to bring it out at a moment's notice.

"Gah! This rain is so hard I can barely see where I am going," Usopp cried out.

"We just need to keep going straight, past the first left and take the second one. After that it should be a straight shot towards Merry," Addy said.

"You can see in this mess?"

"Usopp I can see further in the rain then when it's clear out."

"Then you lead the way," Nami said. "Because I am just as blind as Usopp is."

"I thought I was already doing that." Nami glared at her through the rain. "It shouldn't be much farther now. We can make it before they do. The rain had probably ruined all the gunpowder they brought out so most likely they will have to go and restock."

"Gunpowder?" Usopp asked.

Addy nodded. "It is typical Marine tactics to destroy every pirate ship in harbor when a crew starts creating a ruckus. And since this is Captain we are talking about I assume that they are going to put that plan in motion. Plus, there is also Buggy's crew that are causing problems."

"So we should be worried then?"

"When are you not worried? But to answer your question. Yes. We should be slightly more worried that you usually are."

"Hey! I'm not worried all the time."

"You're right," Nami said. "Just most."

There feet were pounding against the cobble street. They were sweating despite the cooling rain, their hearts pumping. Even howling Wind would not stop them despite the chill that it brought though the rain kept Addy warm. The three of them will make it to the Merry on time and the other two will bring back Luffy in some shape. She would trust them to accomplish that.

"Addy?" Usopp said.

She wiped her hands in front of her eyes clearing away the tears, "Yeah?"

"The Going Merry is going to be okay right?"

"Yeah Usopp." He let out a sigh of relief. "We will all be okay."

"FREEZE!" a voice shouted at them before a dozen Marines came charging from a side alleyway right ahead of them. They would soon be blocking there way forward. Usopp yelped and sped up dragging Nami along. Addy reached for her whip, ready to hold them off for as long as she could when suddenly another voice called out.

"Tierra Coque!" Taryn shouted jumping down from a roof top wielding her battle axe and landing right in the middle of the Marines. Addy felt the ground rumble from the impact and the shockwave knocked down all the Marines. Usopp and Nami just stopped and stared at Taryn probably wondering where she came from.

Addy chuckled. "Well Taryn, you certainly know how to make a first impression."

* * *

Tierra Choque: Earth Shock

Reviews:

Jag- The reveal will be sometime in the Alabasta saga before they actually reach Alabasta. Depending on how well you know that saga you can probably guess when the reveal is. Zoro is back in this chapter though he only makes a brief appearance. Don't worry, you will get a lot more of him and Addy. Just think about how fun Thriller Bark is going to be.


	55. Birthplace of a King Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _So here we are wrapping up Birthplace of a King. This arc did not feel long at all. Next up is going to be Time is Moving Forward and I am actually really excited about that arc. As always please review and let me know what you think or if you have anything you would like to see in the upcoming arcs._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"What are you doing standing around for?" Taryn asked swinging her axe and knocking down a couple of Marines though she was careful not to hurt any. "You're not going to make it to your ship if your stand around."

"Won't you get in trouble?" Addy asked hand still on her whip and ready to lend a hand. Usopp and Nami glanced between the two of them.

"Nah. My mom will bail me out. When you have money you can pretty much solve all of your problems. Now get moving. I don't want to be standing here in the rain all day."

"You got it." Addy swiveled her attention back to Nami and Usopp. "Let's go!"

The three of them continued running though Addy turned her head back keeping an eye on Taryn. She was mowing through the Marines like paper. Every time they tried to attack it bounced right off and she attacked with renewed vigor.

Addy stopped and turned back around. "Hey!" she shouted catching Taryn attention. "I owe you one!"

"Forget about it," Taryn said knocking down another Marine just as three more tried to jump her. "It's a gift. For what happened to Riley."

Addy teared up and turned back around where Nami and Usopp were waiting for her. She heard Taryn yell for Winton to throw the bombs as the three of them disappeared around the corner. There was the sound of an explosion and several people cried out. The rain was still pouring down allowing for Addy to shed the tears she was holding back. Riley… She regretted finishing her flask.

"Addy," Nami stated. "Who was that?"

"An old friend," Addy said wiping away her tears. "Taryn and I have known each other since we were kids. She's good."

"I'll say," Usopp added in. "She looks like she could wrestle a bear with one arm tied behind her back. And win."

"I think she has actually done that."

Usopp stared at her blankly the fish now dragging along the ground. "You have some really weird friends."

"You have no idea. Taryn is actually pretty normal compared to the others. And that is including our crew."

"Good thing she is on our side then. Though if the Navy has already made it this far," Nami suggested. "Then they might have made it Merry. We have to hurry!"

"Nami! Addy! Can't I just ditch this thing?" Usopp asked.

"No, you can't! Run faster!"

"I knew you'd say that."

"She is right," Addy said. "You don't want to be facing Sanji wrath do you?"

"It would be tempting if it meant that I could drop this," Usopp responded.

"Relax we are almost there. Not much further now." It was true. Addy could see Merry bobbing along in the waves. "See we are right here. Merry is right by the lion and the guy with the…"

" _ADDY!_ " Merry screamed. "The guy is trying to set me on fire!"

Addy saw red. She rapidly uncoiled her whip, keeping the handle in a death grip. Nothing else mattered right now but getting to that guy. Before the rabbit ear man could say anything she was sprinting towards him at full speed. She had her whip around him in moments, twisting, tightening, constricting.

"Lautan ombak remuk!" she yelled at smashing into him at full force and then uncoiled her whip rapidly sending him straight into the lion. The two of them ended up in a pile several feet away from the ship.

"Why you!" Bunny man yelled. "Go, Richie!" The lion came barreling towards her, teeth and claws ready to rip her apart. She stood ready, whip in hand…

"Special Attack: Fresh Egg Star!" Usopp yelled launching an egg right by the lion's feet. The lion got completely distracted by the sign of food and started licking it off the ground.

"Nice going Usopp! You two get on the ship!" Addy shouted. Nami and Usopp nodded and started running towards Merry, getting ready to board. Addy turned her attention towards Bunny man who was looking more nervous by the second. "You know I don't take kindly to people who try to hurt my nakama." She cracked her whip in the air and took several steps closer. "What should we do about him Merry?"

" _Marines_!" Merry shouted.

"What?"

Suddenly there were gunshots being fired at them. Addy ducked though the bullet would have missed her anyway. The next ones were a different story and soon Addy was dancing around trying to avoid them all.

" _Ouch_!" Merry exclaimed as one of the bullets hit her side. Addy took a cursory look at the damage. It was nothing Usopp couldn't fix up but that didn't make Addy any happier. She watched, her eyes narrowing as Marines started pouring into the area setting up guns, all pointed towards them. Nami and Usopp weren't at Merry yet so they weren't targets. Addy on the other hand was a different story. She moved around the bullets, dodging each one of them though Addy could hear Merry groan in pain as each one hit her.

"I'm sorry," Addy said softly as she moved out of the way of several more coming towards her.

" _Don't worry about it_ ," Merry whimpered. " _As long as you are all okay, I can handle anything_."

Addy let out a light smile. "Now that is what I like to hear. Usopp! Nami! Get your asses over here now!"

They started running towards her and Merry as fast as they could. The Marines started firing in full force now. Addy leapt onto the ship making her way swiftly to the helm. Eventually one of them would get a lucky hit. She didn't want to give them the chance.

After a moment Merry stated, " _Nami and Usopp are on board_."

"Fantastic," Addy replied. "Now we will wait for the others." She heard the sound of cannons going off and splashing in the water. Addy felt Merry tilt as the aftershock created waves which battered Merry. They couldn't afford to wait.

"Merry!" Addy said. "I am going to take you out."

" _No_! _Not without everyone! I can handle this_!"

"We don't have time for this! One lucky hit and we are all sunk. If we stay here we are a sitting target. What would Captain say if he shows up and you are not here?"

Merry grumbled. " _Alright, I understand. But you make sure you can sail me back to get them okay_."

"Like I wouldn't."

"Addy!" Nami said panting. She was dripping wet. "We need to set sail now!"

"I know," Addy replied calmly. "As soon as you have the anchor raised and the sails unfurled we will be set."

She nodded and when back to the deck to do that. Addy placed her hands on the steering pole and she connected with Merry. She could feel the raising of the anchor, taking both Nami and Usopp to accomplish with a struggle, and the unfurling of the sails as if it was a part of herself. She could feel Usopp and Nami moving around on deck. Felt Ocean and Wind against the hull. Turning the pole to the right Merry started pulling out of dock, though they kept somewhat close to the coast in case one of their crewmates did show up.

" _Sanji here."_ Merry said. " _Though the Marines are giving him problems._ " Addy growled and gripped the pole tighter. Stupid Marines, why do they have to get in the way of everything? " _Can't we go get him_?"

"Too strong of a current," Addy said. "Goes around the entire island. If it wasn't for this storm…"

"But you can sail it right? You're the best helmsman in the world."

"No, I am the best helmsman you are most likely to meet. And even I have to still obey the laws of Ocean. For now, anyway. Give me a few years and that will change."

" _Well can we make a few years right now_?"

"Oh I wish."

" _Usopp just jumped into Ocean_!"

"What!" Addy yelled.

" _He is firing at the Marines_ _with his slingshot_!"

"That idiot." Addy placed one hand on her face and chuckled. Usopp might be a coward but when he is brave, he is really, really brave, to the point of idiotic. Suddenly she felt the ship rock back as if it was being shoved by something. Addy had to work to keep herself stable. She almost went flying into the kitchen. What was going on out there? Looking out the door she saw what looked like waves of green Wind battering the ship. It was even blowing away the rain. However it soon dissipated and the rain returned though it was lighter now.

" _What was that_?" Merry asked.

"I have no idea," Addy responded. "My guess would be Devil Fruit since the only other logical explanation is basically impossible since none of them are here."

" _Is Devil Fruit your explanation for everything_?"

"No but it is for a lot of things." They were sailing away from the shore now. Green Wind had blown them off course and now tail Wind and the currents was keeping them from tuning around. If Addy tried she would most likely tip the ship over. Merry was not going anywhere. Addy let go the pole and walked to the back of the ship where Nami was. The shore looked like a completely disaster. There was debris everywhere, scattered throughout the streets. Some of the roofs of houses were torn off. Addy thought she could make out the rest of her crew as well, including Usopp who by some miracle made it out shore.

"Luffy!" Nami shouted gripping the railing tightly. "Addy can you do something?!"

"I cannot change the laws of Ocean," Addy stated. "You know there is nothing I can do."

Meanwhile Usopp, Sanji and Zoro grouped up onto the shore while Luffy ran in the opposite direction. He jumped onto what looked like a broken railing that was now sloped upwards. Did Wind really cause that much damage? Sometimes Addy forgot how powerful Wind could be. Luffy flipped himself around so now he was facing his crew and stretched. It clicked in Addy's mind what he was going to do and she winced. This was going to be painful for them. He launched himself at the three of them and flung them all the way to Merry where they crashed into the red and white triangular sail and then landed with a thump on deck. They were in a state of disarray and it looked like Sanji and Usopp both had headaches.

"Everyone," Nami exclaimed softly.

"Well at least we are all on board now," Addy stated helping Usopp and then Sanji up. Zoro got up all by himself and Luffy was laying on the ground. It was still raining and the clouds were pitch black, but there was a sense of calmness as well. The waves no longer battered them as much and the electrified air dissipated. She watched as Loguetown slowly faded into the distance. They would probably not come back here, not for a long, long time.

Yet they still had to be somewhat careful. The storm was still raging after all. A rather large wave formed behind them tilting the ship yet it missed them completely.

"Ugh!" Luffy stated. "It's almost like the ship is going to tip over!"

"Don't worry Captain," Addy said helping him up. "That won't happen. Not under my watch."

"Shouldn't you be at the helm?" Usopp asked.

"At this point any change would cause us to tip over. Once we get a little farther out then I will take control again."

"Look at that light!" Nami stated. Addy turned to see what Nami was looking at. It was an old stone lighthouse nestled on a small island. Its light was shining brightly, piercing its way through the darkness. "It's a "guiding light." The entrance to the Grand Line lies ahead of that light."

"The Grand Line is ahead of that light," Luffy said standing in between Nami and Addy.

"What do you wanna do?"

"B-But there's no reason to enter during a storm like this…" Usopp stated. Addy only then noticed that he was basically hugging the mast to keep himself from going overboard.

"Usopp right," Addy added in. "Besides I recommend we take a day before we enter. Find a nice island and relax on the beach. Because we are not going to get many relaxing days on the Grand Line."

"I second that."

" _As do I,"_ Merry said.

Luffy grinned and turned towards her. "After that then. Addy are you ready to return?"

She gave him a smile. "Captain. I've been ready for a long time."

The rest of the crew smiled as well with the exception of Usopp and Sanji gave a thumbs up. They were all ready to enter for the most part.

"Shall we hold a launching ceremony for setting sail on the great ocean?" Sanji asked.

The rest of the crew murmured there agreements except for Usopp who still seemed nervous about the entire idea. Sanji then grabbed the nearest barrel and placed it in the center. He then swung his foot onto it careful not to break it and stated, clearly, plainly and boldly. "In order to find the All Blue!"

'All Blue' Addy thought. Of course that would be his dream. Even Addy didn't know where that was though she had a guess. All she did know was that it existed. In some form or another.

Luffy was next placing his foot up. "In order to be King of the Pirates!"

Zoro came up next right beside Luffy. "In order to become the Greatest Swordsman in the World!"

Addy went between Luffy and Sanji and swung her foot up. "In order to hear the Song of the Sea!"

Nami came in beside her. "In order to draw a world map!"

Usopp was still somewhat hesitant though he lifted his leg up as well and hoped along towards them. "I-In order… to become a brave warrior of the sea!"

" _In order to sail with you guys forever_!" Merry stated boldly. Addy felt Merry join them almost as if she put her own foot up next to theirs.

The seven of them stood silent for a moment, coming to an understanding of both their own dreams and those of their crew. At that moment there was an unspoken oath. That no mattered what happened they would support each other's dreams as best as they could and they would not get in each other's way. If one failed then another would pick up the slack. That was there way.

"We're going to the Grand Line!" Luffy announced. Without saying a word they all raised their feet above their heads.

"Yeah!" the straw hats replied to their captain. Then they brought their feet down smashing the barrel into several pieces as lighting was striking all around them. It was official. Grand Line beware for the Straw Hats were coming and they will not back down. For they were following the future King of the Pirates and his will is law.

* * *

Lautan ombak remuk- Ocean Waves smashed

Reviews:

Jag: No her and Alabasta are not going to get along. At all. Addy is going to be spending most of the Alabasta saga unhappy for various reasons. Also expect more Zoro in the upcoming arc.

RedHairedOctavia: New friends. This isn't the last we are going to see of Taryn and Winton. They are going to pop in and out of this series along with a lot of other of Addy's old friends.


	56. Time is Moving Forward Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _Okay so this arc is based on the second one piece movie which is a actually fairly decent One Piece adventure movie though its not one of the better ones. It is better than the first one at least. I have actually already finished writing this entire arc and I can say that word count wise it is going to be longer than Loguetown. You are in for a wild ride. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Nami why do I have to wear this?" Addy asked. They were standing in one of the many swimsuit stores on the island changing into bikinis. They docked on the island last night after the storm had subsided. Nami had brought them to a resort island where they could relax for a day before heading to the Grand Line. Addy didn't think it would entail all this however. Nami didn't even let her bring her bags, only letting her keep her whip and flask and she was luckily in that regard. As Nami insisted this was a vacation and therefore weapons are not needed so Zoro and Usopp were both forced to leave their swords and slingshot on Merry. The rest of the crew was already on the beach while Nami dragged her here after finding out Addy didn't actually own a swimsuit. Merry had also insisted that Addy enjoy herself with the crew so she cut herself off so Addy couldn't talk to her. Not until she returned to the ship. "I mean all my clothes are water proof. I don't need too…"

"It makes you look good," Nami said. She was facing away from Addy holding two choices in her hands. "Now which one do you like for me?" Nami was holding up a sort of floral decorated patterned one that looked like the wallpaper of some evil grandmother's house. And the other was pink.

"Go with the pink one it matches your skin tone."

"See you are good at this. And you look amazing." Addy was currently wearing a black halter bikini that didn't exactly cover much, though it did show off her swimmers physique as well as other assets that Addy was more uncomfortable showing off nowadays. "You are definitely going to get some attention."

"I think Sanji will still make a beeline for you."

"That isn't who I am talking about, I think Zoro has a crush on you."

"Really." Addy rolled her eyes. She didn't think they were keeping their relationship a secret. Nami should have figured it out by now.

"Don't be surprised. Have you seen yourself? If he had a type you would be it. Now come on." Nami grabbed her hand and started dragging her out of the store, she just managed to get ahold of her whip. "Let's join the others."

The walk to the beach was quick. The warm yellow sand was coarse under her feet and Addy winched. She never did like sand. It always got everywhere like glitter and it was a pain to clean. For such a nice place it was surprisingly empty. Perhaps it was the off season though if this nice warm weather was the off season, Addy had to wonder what was the on season. No sooner did they show up at the beach than Sanji started going crazy. Addy had to give him credit. He did have an awfully lot of synonyms for beautiful. While Nami lapped up the attention, settling down on one of the tables so that she could tan, she asked Sanji to go find sunscreen. He ran off as fast as he could. He was absolutely whipped but Addy thought that he knew it and surprisingly didn't mind. Luffy was sitting on a rock fishing and she was unsure where Usopp was. Zoro was doing pushups with several bags on his back, completely oblivious to the world despite the fact he was only a few feet away from them. He had taken off his shirt much to Addy's appreciation. This was going to be fun.

"Hey, Zoro." Addy said standing in front of him. He looked up at her and his arms promptly gave out. "You alright there?"

"Yeah, yeah," he said blushing like a tomato. Nami gave her a thumbs up. He started doing pushups again. Saying something with each out breath. "I just wasn't expecting you…. I mean…. You normally…"

Addy sat on top of the three bags and added her weight to the pile. She heard him grunt in appreciation. "Don't worry about it. I get what you are trying to say."

"Hey!" Luffy yelled. "I found something cool! Come and see! Hey! "

"What's he so happy about now?" Nami asked turning her head to face him.

"Maybe he found a seashell," Addy replied. "Or a lost undersea city. Or a hermit crab. You never really know with him."

"Sorry to keep you waiting Nami dear," Sanji said swooping in. He was just in blue swimming trunks. Addy had to bite her tongue to keep herself from whistling. Sanji was gorgeous in that I am fairytale prince sort of way. Zoro on the other hand was a beast as noted in the way his back muscles worked. She traced it lightly with her finger, causing him to shudder but he kept on going speeding up slightly. Addy kept it up tracing intricate patterns in his back, noticing the scratch marks from their earlier romp had disappeared. She should fix that.

"There if I may," Sanji said undoing the tie of Nami's top so that he could cover her in sunscreen. It looked like he was having the best day of his life. "Oh…! Nami dear! Your skin is so smooth!"

"Your hand slips even once and I kill you, okay?" Nami stated.

"Yes," he started slathering it into her. Addy thought he was perhaps spending too much time doing so but Nami wasn't complaining. "Addy sweet?"

"Yes Sanji?"

"Would you like me to do you next? I would hate for your pale skin to be burned by the sun."

She felt Zoro stiffen a little but continued doing pushups. If he was doing them a little faster now and with only one hand well that wasn't Addy concern. "No thanks. I'm good."

"You sure?" Surprisingly it was Zoro that asked and not Sanji. Sanji went back to making heart eyes over Nami. "Because I can…"

"You just want an excuse to rub your hands all over me," she teased.

"No I… that's not…"

"Relax," she said softly. "I appreciate the thought but I covered myself in SPF 200 this morning before Nami dragged me out."

"There is an SPF 200?"

"If you know where to look." Addy paused for a moment before leaning down and whispering in his ear. "Though on second thought I might need to have it reapplied. There should be some spots I definitely missed. And you could use some. Who knows where that will go. Our hands roaming each other's bodies." Zoro almost bolted up right then and there but Addy pressed her hand on his back. "Easy, think of it as a reward for all your training." She felt him shudder and speed up and she sat back up.

"Man this is one great vacation," Sanji said. He looked like he was over the moon. "Addy sweet has the best ideas."

"That's fine," Nami stated. "But remember that two of us have bounties on their heads."

"Hey, everyone come look! It's really cool!" Luffy shouted.

Usopp also came, running towards them. He was wearing a red and white full body suit with an inflatable tube around his waist. He was also carrying a bouncy ball. Did he just finish changing? "But aren't you the one relaxing most Nami?" he asked sitting down on the sand.

"Hey! Heey! Come look! It's the Going Merry!"

"It's okay for now," Nami replied to Usopp. "Like Addy said we're not in a hurry to get going."

"I agree with Nami dear," Sanji added in.

"Of course you would," Addy said taking a shot from her flask. "What about you Zoro, Captain?"

"Our ship is really somethin'," Luffy stated.

"What're you talking about Luffy?" Usopp asked. He had a massive grin on his face that suddenly morphed into shock. Addy turned to see what he was looking at only to watch Merry slowly sail away. Forget what Merry said, she was going to reestablish the connection.

" _ADDY! HELP! I AM BEING KIDNAPPED BY SOME GUY! I promise I will never break communication again just save me!"_ Merry shouted. It sounded like her voice was going hoarse. How long had she being yelling?

"GOING MERRY!" Everyone shouted. Addy jumped off Zoro's back and started running across the beach, trying to make it before Merry sailed to far away. Zoro and Usopp were quickly following on her heels. Unfortunately Wind was with her and soon she was in the distance. Addy stopped right by Luffy who had a massive grin on his face.

"Our pirate mark is so cool!" Luffy stated.

"You moron!" Zoro shouted. "How can you be so calm?!"

"Our ship just got stolen!" Usopp yelled.

Luffy turned towards them panic in his eyes. "WHAT! STOLEN!"

"YOU DIMWIT!" the three of them yelled at him. Sanji and Nami joined them as well.

"Hold it, thief!" Luffy shouted jumping off the rock. He pulled back his arm and stretched. His fingers barely touched the ship before his arm was pulled back towards him with a snap sending him tumbling into the sand

"The Going Merry is the soul I got from Kaya," Usopp stated clenching his fists. He whirled around to Addy. "Can't you swim over and get it?!"

" _Please do so_!" Merry called out her voice was becoming more distant with each second.

"No!" Zoro stated. Addy turned to look at him. "We shouldn't split up. Even for you that wouldn't be an easy swim and who knows who captured Merry."

"You're saying I can't take them?" Addy asked incredulous.

"No, I'm saying that it would be a risk for you to do it yourself. It could be a ploy by bounty hunters to get you and Luffy by yourselves."

Addy growled but removed her hand from her whip. Zoro was right. The last thing they needed was for her or Luffy to end up in the hands of bounty hunters. Or worse the Navy.

"Being robbed by a fellow thief? This is a joke right?" Nami said incredulous. She hadn't redone the tie to her top so she was just clinging it to her chest.

"Let me get that," Addy said tying it up for her.

"Thanks," she replied letting her arm drop back down before taking a deep breath in.

"GIVE IT BACK!" they all yelled. Addy could hear Merry voice grow softer, soon she wouldn't be able to hear her at all.

"We need to find a ship," Addy said looking around her. Unfortunately they were the only ones here so they couldn't steal one. They were essentially stuck.

Luffy clapped a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry Addy we'll think of something."

…

"Captain?" Addy said. "When you said we'll think of something I didn't know you meant this."

"It's been a day since it was stolen," Sanji stated. "But you know couldn't we have found a better ship?"

"Not to mention clothes?" Zoro muttered. Addy couldn't help but agree. They were currently sailing on the only ship that was available on the island and Addy was using that term loosely. It was a swan paddle boat that they were all crammed in. There wasn't even enough space for all of them so Luffy had to cling to the swan figurehead. Hell she was basically sitting on top of Zoro not that he seemed to mind. Swan boat constantly rocked back and forth. Not helping was all the rocks that seemed to litter this part of Ocean. Addy barely had control over the thing. They really didn't have any idea where they were going. She was only following the route that Addy suspected the thieves would take, considering the currents.

On top of that they were all dressed in wedding clothes except for Luffy who had the brains to actually keep his outfit. Nami was in a beautiful white dress, she almost looked like a fairytale princess while Sanji was in a dashing white tuxedo. Whether them matching was coincidence or not Addy would never know. Considering she was wearing a white shiromuku kinmono that she could barely move in, while Zoro was in the haori and hakama maybe it was better to keep her mouth shut. She wasn't even fully sure what Usopp was wearing.

"Quit complaining," Usopp said. "The only place open was a rental store for wedding ceremonies."

"We know Usopp, we were all there," Addy stated. It was a massive surprise to find that it was the only store open that was selling any sort of clothing. Addy and Nami faked that they were having a spontaneous wedding so as to avoid the embarrassment, to Sanji utter joy. When Zoro heard the plan he turned into an absolute blushing mess. He couldn't even string two words together. Addy would tease him about it later. "If only we had our clothes or some of our other stuff…"

"I said I was sorry," Nami said. "How was I supposed to know that this idiot would let Merry get stolen?"

"By the way, where are we?" Luffy asked.

"I don't know," Nami said. "My maps and compasses were all stolen with the ship remember?"

"And my katanas too, damn it," Zoro exclaimed.

"I don't even have a pair of shoes," Sanji added in.

"What you didn't take one from the store?" Addy asked. "It was all free."

"None of them were my size."

"I still don't know how you got away with that," Nami stated.

"Well since you won't actually allow us to steal things, despite the fact that we are pirates, I just brought up the fact that my grandmother is Amora," Addy stated.

"I still can't believe that you only just now brought up the fact that your grandmother is the richest woman on the planet! Do you know how much we can get?!"

"It should only be used in emergencies otherwise she would most likely track us down. And trust me, we do not want that."

"Whatever." She turned her attention back on Luffy. "It's good we're going after the thief and all but why'd you set out to sea without any preparation?!"

Suddenly Addy thought she heard splashing. None of her crew had fallen in so it wasn't that important. Sailing around a rock, she spotted a kid that appeared to be struggling in the water. Appeared being the key word. The kid was playing them.

"Hey look, there's a kid over there," Usopp pointed out.

"Is he drowning?" Sanji asked.

"Nope, he's fine," Addy replied. "Probably some sort of trick to lead people in so that he can rob them. Joke's on him, we don't actually have anything."

"I don't know Addy sweet. I don't want to take the chance."

"No listen you…" It was too late Sanji jumped in to rescue the kid. All Addy could do was have the swan boat follow him. He could have at least waited until they were closer. Suddenly the kid broke into a massive smile and a moment later Addy and the others found themselves trapped in a net.

* * *

Jag: Well here one is :). Hope it is to your liking.


	57. Time is Moving Forward Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _I think out of all the arcs so far this is one of my favorites. The only thing that is missing is Merry but she will be back later. Also for those who haven't seen the movie, Chat Ten is another OC. As always please review and let me know what you think. Reviews make me happy._

 _This is the remastered version where you can actually read Chat Ten dialogue in all its glory. Because this site hates me and didn't upload it the first time. Enjoy._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"What did I tell you?!" Addy yelled at Sanji bonking him on the head.

"Ah I'm sorry my Addy sweet. I will always make sure to trust your judgment from now on," he said.

If Addy thought they were smushed before, they were even more smushed together in the net. It was just a tangle of limbs. She couldn't even reach her whip so that she could cut them out. Another boat came sailing up, piled high with chests. A man in an overly large coat and goggles was standing in front.

"Akisu, good work," he told the boy who just jumped onto the ship.

"Easy victory, piece o' cake," Akisu replied pointing towards them. "Idiots like them are easy to trick."

"Damn it you little brat," Sanji growled.

"This is entirely your fault," Addy muttered.

"But they're only a gang of poor folk," Akisu continued as the boat sailed forward to meet them. "You can tell they don't have any money just by the look of them."

"Duped eh?" the guy asked.

"You know we are right here?" Addy said.

"A group of paupers, huh?" He undid something at the bottom of the net and they all came crashing down on top of each other, onto the deck. Luckily she landed on Luffy which cushioned most of the blow.

"Who the hell are you?" Sanji asked.

"Us?" the guy asked.

"Who else would we be talking too?" Addy asked rolling her eyes.

The man striked a pose as did the boy and the two of them started speaking in unison. "Those sailing in search of a mountain of treasure!" The two of them brought their arms together as if they were going to lock them. "The Thief Brothers!" Then then jumped in the air summersaulting before landing back on their feet on top of the pile of chests. "Borodo and…"

"Akisu!" Akisu finished off.

"Thief Brothers?" Usopp questioned. The pile of chests then subsequently collapsed causing them to land on deck. Various chests spilled out their contents revealing nothing but garbage. So they were bad thieves then.

"What's that?" Luffy asked.

"It's just a bunch of trash," Nami pointed out.

"Well, well. They're nothing but scavengers," Usopp stated smugly.

"That's not true," Aksiu stated. "Watch what you say about Borodo! Borodo is the man who will steal the Diamond Clock from Clockwork Island and become the greatest thief in the world!"

"You mean the famous Diamond Clock?" Nami asked visibly excited.

"The what now?" Addy asked.

"The finest jewel and greatest artifact ever crafted. The most valuable clock in the world!"

"You do mean in East Blue right?" Addy said.

"You do realize that not everything valuable is in the Grand Line right?"

"Lies."

Sanji's eyes turned into hearts. "That's our knowledgeable Nami dear!"

Usopp turned towards Nami. "Ah so if someone was able to steal it he really would be the world's greatest thief." Addy rolled her eyes. They were still naïve that would change once they hit the Grand Line. Once the found Merry.

"Oh, then he's just like me!" Luffy stated. Borodo looked surprised and Addy didn't blame him considering the circumstances they were in. "I'm aimin' to be the greatest pirate in the world, the Pirate King!"

"P-Pirate King?" Borodo stuttered. "With this ship?" He pointed towards the paddle boat.

"NO WAY IN HELL!" Luffy, Usopp and Addy shouted at him.

"Our ship got stolen," Sanji said shaking his head. "But we don't know the shithead who did it."

"Does your ship… have a pirate mark wearing a straw hat?" Borodo asked.

"You've seen it?" Usopp asked.

"I saw it with the Trump Siblings."

"Trump Siblings?" Luffy stated.

"They're a nefarious group of pirates that have a stronghold on Clockwork Island and terrorize the surrounding area. And the Diamond Clock that I'm after is also in their possession." He handed them their bounty posters and Luffy took them. Holding them all in his hands it allowed them to look at who they were facing. There were six of them. Bear King, who legitimately could have been a cross between a bear and a human who also had the highest bounty of 11,600,000. Pin Joker at 9,9000 who looked like some sort of demented court jester. Boo Jack who decided that dressing like a pig was a great idea had 3,200,000. Chat Ten who was in a skin tight leather cat suit including ears and a tail had 6,400,000. Honey Queen who naturally was bee themed was 7,800,000 and finally Skunk One at 6,000,000. Addy had to keep herself from laughing. These guys were a joke. Hell her bounty was higher.

"They don't look so tough," Addy, Zoro and Sanji said at the same time. Sanji started going goo goo eyes over her and him saying the same thing. Zoro then cut in and the two of them started bickering. What a beautiful friendship. It was only to get better from here.

"This bear guy is too cool!" Luffy pointed out. "Awesome!"

"What are you so happy for?!" Borodo asked incredulous. "They stole your ship! You're supposed to be pissed! You're supposed to want to beat the crap out of 'em!"

"Who says we won't," Addy replied. "And trust me, we are plenty pissed."

"B-Borodo!" Akisu shouted. "Over there!" He pointed towards a giant ship that was approaching them with a pirate flag waving in the breeze. Behind it was several more ships. An entire fleet was approaching. This wasn't going to be as easy as Addy thought. On the sails of all the ships were card suits along with a letter or number. So each of the members had several ships under them? Why were their bounties so low? Could the Navy get nothing right?

"The Trump Pirates," Borodo stuttered.

"Hey, Trump Siblings," Luffy shouted. They caught the attention of Honey Queen who was naked and relaxing in a tub on the figurehead.

Unfortunately that also meant that Sanji noticed. His eyes immediately burst into hearts and he started freaking out. "That is one sexy lady!"

"Eh," Addy said. "I would actually peg her as a six, maybe six and a half if I was generous." She never did go for the blond thing. Now if she had red hair that would be a different story. Or even better, pink.

"And what might you want?" Honey Queen asked. There ship sailed close enough to them that their tiny boat was covered in its shadow.

"Give us back the ship you stole from us," Luffy cried out.

"Your ship? I've never seen it." She actually sounded truthful, which set Addy off. Was there something more going on?

"Like hell you haven't," Nami yelled. Honey Queen turned towards Nami and she got this look in her eye. Addy would recognize that look from anywhere and apparently so did Nami. She stepped in front of Nami and unfurled her whip with Nami clasping her shoulder. Addy glared at Queen Bee as Boo Jack and Chat Ten flipped onto the figure head which was a giant bear's head.

"Alright!" Bo Jack announced. "Time for a riddle!"

"OHgoodyIcan'twait. Riddlesarethebest," Chat Ten said. He spoke so fast paced that Addy could only make out every other word. If that.

"Riddle?" Sanji asked.

"1. Who will become the greatest pirate in the world, the Pirate King?" Boo Jack asked.

"IknowIknowpickme. Iknow,"Chat Ten chattered.

"Come on Boo Jack," Queen Bee said. "That one is way too easy."

"Me!" Luffy answers pointing to himself.

"Boo-boo wrong," Boo Jack said.

"Wrongwrongsuperwrong," Chat Ten said now jumping around like a lunatic.

"The answer is our boss, Bear King," Boo Jack answered.

"No you're wrong," Luffy stated. "No common knowledge, I guess."

"What?"

"What kind of riddle was that anyway?" Sanji asked shrugging his shoulders and running his hand through his hair in frustration.

"It wasn't one," Addy pointed out.

"I knew these guys were nothing special," Zoro added in.

"Did the pitiful bounties give it away or was it the fact that they are idiots?"

"Both."

"Boo Boo!" Boo Jack called out. "Making fun of the Trump Pirates eh?!"

"Well then it seems like we have to explain it to them," Queen Bee said leaning back in her tub. She then snapped her fingers and the crew of the ship came out ready to attack them.

"They're out," Sanji said.

"Not much choice," Zoro stated.

"Right, let's see it!" Borodo told them. Pirates started streaming down the hulls of the ships towards them. Addy snapped her whip in the air. She was ready for a fight.

"Hold this for me." Luffy said placing the hat on Nami. She wasn't going to be fighting. Not in that outfit. "Gomu Gomu no Pistol." Luffy launched his fist and punched one guy sending him careening into several others all lined up. Sanji was busy kicking guys left right and center. Zoro got a stick from somewhere and was beating up guys with that.

"Lautan Pakem!" Addy called out wrapping her whip around one guy. "Kembali Memutar!" She brought her whip back to her hand while at the same time twisting it causing the guy to spin into a bunch of others. Right six down and hundreds more to go. Fantastic. She spun around lashing her whip at everyone she could. Her dress did not allow for the full range of motion. Addy bashed her hilt into one guy that got to close and lashed at several more though they seemed to be crawling out of the wood work. Together the four of them managed to get several guys into the water. There was almost continuous splashing. The Trump Pirates were yelling all over, though there were a fair amount of screams of pain, groans and whimpers mixed in as well. Perhaps this was a great vacation after all.

Suddenly Boo Jack and Chat Ten joined the fight as well. Boo Jack turned himself into a giant spike ball. It sort of reminded Addy of the pufferfish she fought though Boo Jack had a lot less spikes. Chat Ten was just really fast. On his feet and hands were these cat claws that sliced through everything. The two of them completely wrecked the boat they were on before jumping back on their ship.

Usopp looked in shock at the damage they caused. Sanji looked more annoyed than anything. "Who were those guys?" he asked.

"Nuisances," Addy replied. "Nothing we can't handle."

"They might be a bit tricky," Zoro pointed out.

"No trickier than the fishmen we faced," Addy stated. Her dress had sustained significant rips. Any more fighting and the thing was most likely going to fall apart. Not that she minded. She could probably fight better with just the bikini. Not for the first time she wonder why she wasn't doing that, then remembered she had Sanji as a crew mate.

Usopp was still freaking out. "Yosh, leave this to me," he stated running off to the rudder of the ship. "My famous 'Escaping is Winning' Master Plan." Somehow he caused them to start sailing off away from the Trump Pirates at lightning speed. How was he doing this? Addy then saw just how fast he was moving the rudder and raised an eyebrow. When Usopp was scared he could do some miraculous things.

"RUNNING AWAY?!" they shouted at him. The boat was halfway in the air at this point and Usopp was still at the rudder moving it as if his life depended on it. He would have to collapse from exhaustion soon. Addy could hear it squeaking. The boat itself couldn't take much more of this abuse.

"Stop!" Akisu yelled at him, smashing him in the head with a plank. Borodo dived into Ocean after something. Apparently something fell into Ocean.

"It's safe!" he called back. Akisu sighed in relief. Then Addy saw Queen Bee and Chat Ten riding Boo Jack through the water very quickly towards them. Honey Queen threw something at them which landed in the boat with a clunk. It was only a second later that Addy realized that they were bombs. She grabbed Luffy and shoved Usopp out of the boat right before it exploded.

Holding onto Luffy she managed to bring him to the surface despite the clothes weighing her down. She brought him to the only thing that was left of the boat, a pallet of wood. He grabbed onto it though Addy knew if she let go of him than Ocean would claim him. The others were clinging to it as well. Except for Nami. Addy looked around for her only to feel her heart sink. Chat Ten had her, holding her bridal style. From here it looked like she was unconscious. Addy cursed herself. If only she had been slightly faster than Nami would be safe. She reached for her flask only to remember that it was empty. This wasn't good. If she didn't drink something in an hour than the bad things would happen.

"Now, it's riddle time again," Bo Jack announced.

"Funfunfunfunfun. Idoloveriddles,"Chat Ten squeed.

"What is it that we want most?"

"Nami dear!" Sanji exclaimed.

"Yes you're right. We'll be taking her with us."

"What did you say?!"

"Put her down or you are dead!" Addy growled.

"She'll be a souvenir for Captain Bear King," Bo Jack told them.

"Yesyessounvenirforourdearcaptain. Sheisgoingtobehisveryprettywife,"Chat Ten laughed.

"After we take her away," Honey Queen stated. "It'll be fun to see him do this and that to her." Addy felt her stomach drop and bile rise. To do that to another human being. They just went from being annoying to being in Addy's bad books. And that is somewhere no one in their right minds wanted to be. Luckily everyone else had the same reaction as she did.

"This and that?!" they all said at the same time though Addy wasn't sure they understood what she was fully implying. Before Addy could drop Luffy to someone else and beat the crap out of them they threw another bomb, blowing up what little rubble they were standing on. In the chaos she let go of Luffy so she had to dive back down to save him. Bringing him back to the surface she saw the three of them roll away back to their fleet. Addy growled low wishing oh so desperately that she was a little more along with her powers.

"Shit!" Sanji said. He was swimming right next to her. He looked visibly angry as well and rightfully so but there was something else there as well. Pain, sorrow, a whole bunch of other emotions reflecting in his blue eyes. Could he be?

She felt something tap her on the shoulder and turned to see Usopp ridding another pallet. Or rather a bunch of the rubble smashed together to form a pallet. He took Luffy from her with Zoro's help and she got on. Followed by Sanji. She then proceeded to vomit over the edge, chills taking over. Addy felt someone rubbing her back.

"Captain?" she said softly.

"Yeah?" he replied from right behind her.

"I know you don't fully understand. But we need to destroy them. Completely and utterly. No mercy. Okay?"

"Of course." Addy suspected he was smiling. He was always smiling. The chills were coming with full force now. She felt her heartbeat go a million miles a minute. Look like the symptoms were hitting her faster than she thought. Her head felt like it was about to explode. And then the memories started coming in. Luckily it was only fragments but the fog was starting to clear. Addy rested her forehead onto of the pallet, trying to calm her racing heart and block what she was remembering. She felt herself being pulled back. Addy expected to hit the wood but instead she fell on something rubbery. Opening her eyes she saw Luffy looking down at her concerned. He was moving a hand through her hair. She was laying in his lap. Zoro was sitting down next to Luffy, his hand resting on her back. She could see the concern in his eyes but there was more. The feelings that Sanji had in his eyes not a moment ago were in Zoro's now. What did that mean?

She thought she could hear Borodo asking if she was alright and Usopp talking to him but she couldn't make out the words. What she could feel was the pallet moving. Glancing over her shoulder she saw that Borodo had set up a cloth like a parachute and was guiding them using Wind. Smart though that also meant their fates were with him. She saw Usopp and Sanji pop into her vision as well looks of concern as well though they didn't have the same look as Zoro, or Luffy even whose concern was messed with so many other things Addy didn't know where to begin. Instead she let her eyes close hoping that sleep would overtake her. Unfortunately, the Gods were not that merciful.

* * *

Lautan Pakem: Ocean Grip

Kembali Memutar: Return Twist

Reviews:

RedHairedOctavia: Yeah Merry isn't going to be in this arc a whole lot, which is a shame because I like writing Merry. Addy and Zoro are adorable though.

Jag: The two movies that I recommend that everyone should see, besides the obvious 11 and 12 is movie 5 which is a fantastic Zoro movie and 6 which is my favorite. I can't wait until we get there. This is going to be a very heavy Addy and Zoro arc, I would say along the same lines as Arlong Park was.


	58. Time is Moving Forward Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _When I started writing this arc I was expecting it to sort of be a fun filler adventure story with little long term plot. Instead it sort of turned into this. At this point I think Addy is controlling the story more than I am. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Are we really going to struggle to Clockwork Island with this?" Zoro asked. Addy could feel his hand still on her, though now Usopp and Sanji's had also joined his.

"Just keep quiet," Akisu said. "Borodo is a genius at manipulating the winds and waves!"

"Kid's right," Addy muttered. "Can feel it."

"Well if Addy says so then it's all good," Luffy stated.

"Luffy…" Usopp said. "I'm not sure Addy is in the best condition to say that."

"Usopp," Addy slurred. "You how I say I can do things with disa, disav, minuses?"

"Yeah?"

"Well I can still sail better than you even when I am going through withdrawal. Guy is doing good."

"Whatever you say Addy," Zoro stated.

"Just so you know, Nami dear was taken cause you had to go and jump in the ocean," Sanji said to Borodo.

"After all the trouble I went through to escape from them," Usopp sighed. "Is that your treasure?"

Addy thought she heard a clicking noise, like something being wound up.

"That music box is the only thing Akisu has left of his hometown," Borodo stated.

"Hometown?" Luffy asked. The clicking stopped and Addy thought she heard a lid open. A sweet soft melody started to play though Addy did not recognize the tune.

"When Akisu was an infant I found him floating on the sea. He was listening to that lullaby. That song was the only thing that would calm Akisu down."

"I understand."

"I'm gonna become a cool thief like Borodo and never be hungry again!" Aksiu announced.

"Whirlpool," Addy stated.

"What?!" everyone said turning towards her.

"Whirlpool. Over there." She waved her hand in the general direction it was. "A little ahead." Sure enough they passed by a whirlpool.

"Wow, Addy you were right," Usopp said sounding surprised.

"Don't insult me," she responded.

"We're approaching Clockwork Island," Borodo said. Addy cracked open her eyes. Might as well see what everyone was excited about. Everyone looked absolutely amazed and Addy turned herself to see what the big deal was. It was a giant spiral of stone reaching high into the sky, so far up that Addy couldn't see the top. Clouds were swirling around it and it stuck out clearly against the blue sky.

"So, what should we do now?" Borodo ask.

"Before or after I drown myself in booze?"

"After….? We want to steal the Diamond Clock and you want to get your nakama and ship back. Either way we're all going to Trump Castle."

"The base of those shitty pirates who took Nami dear," Sanji stated.

"And Going Merry is there too," Usopp pointed out.

"And my katanas," Zoro added in.

"Then let's go together to the Trump Castle!"

"Yeah!" Luffy responded with a big grin.

It wasn't too long until they reached the shore. With some help Luffy and Zoro managed to get her upright. She felt unsteady on her feet as if the ground was about to collapse in on her. Luckily Zoro stayed by her side providing her something she could lean against.

"Too cool! Too cool!" Luffy called out waving his arms around. From down below it looked like several disks all stacked on top of each other. Addy had a feeling it would not be easy to make it to the top.

"How the hell did they set up something like this?" Usopp asked. Addy was wondering the same thing. It would take a marvelous work of engineering.

"They made it to defend themselves from enemy invasion," Borodo told them. Well if that was the case than it certainly worked. "They are filled with traps. If someone tries to invade up the stairway they'll be killed before they reached the town above." Of course there were. Why wouldn't there be? Right now all Addy cared about was getting a damn drink in her.

"Traps, huh? So how do we climb it?"

"There's an elevator running through the center shaft." Oh screw that. It would be faster to walk. Her, Luffy, Zoro and Sanji all started heading up the staircase. She managed to keep herself steady though the others made sure she wasn't walking along the edge. And by keeping her steady she meant that Zoro was basically carrying her but that was details. "When they come out to terrorize the seas the secret door will open. So until then we wait." Borodo, Usopp and Akisu realized what they were doing and started panicking, racing up the steps towards them. "Those stairs are full of traps!"

"We'll just tackle them one at a time," Sanji said.

"Waiting here's too much of a pain. We'll just go right up," Zoro stated.

"I just want to get their quickly," Addy added in. "No point in wasting our time here."

"This'll be fun," Luffy said excited. They all started running up the stairs as quickly as they could when they suddenly turned into a slope. Somehow none of them fell backwards but started running in place. She felt the presence of water and soon Sanji's eye started bugging out of his head and he started screaming like a banshee. That wasn't a good sign. Sure enough water started rushing at them, pushing the back down the staircase. While this was annoying, it helped to clear Addy's senses, even if it was only ankle deep. She no longer felt sluggish and like she was about to die but instead renewed. Addy could still go for a drink but it could wait slightly longer and at least she didn't want to curl up in a ball and die.

Instead of sending them back all the way down however, giant slabs of rock appeared behind them with spikes. Luffy managed to grab some handholds from where the rock had broken away and stretched, keeping them from hitting the spikes and forming a sort of slingshot. Then the rumbling came and boulders appeared from around the corner. At this point most of them were screaming like lunatics. Luckily Sanji had his head screwed on straight and jumped towards the boulders smashing them in half.

"Guess I gotta do something," Zoro muttered. He kneeled down and dug his fingers underneath the stone. After a few grunts and groans he managed to pull the rock up causing it all to break apart in a million pieces all the way up. Addy whistled. That was impressive. They all started running back up again with Sanji in the lead. There were several more traps as they ran up though between the three of them, the monster trio managed to take care of all of them. They finally broke through a wooden barricade and proceeded to collapse on the grass. Before them was the town and it was impressive considering it was a million miles in the sky. How fun. Addy hoped they had a decent tavern somewhere.

Most of them were exhausted. Sanji and Zoro were both collapsed on the ground panting. Luffy somehow still had energy. He was like a little kid, basically vibrating with excitement at the town though Addy did not blame them. The town was at the base of a massive hill covered in windmills that went even further into the sky. Everything was built like a miniature modern castle, all made out of very fine stonework. Surprisingly birds were managed to fly this high. Addy was short of breath and she was feeling dizzy.

"What's that?! What's that?!" Luffy shouted. "It's so cool!"

"What kind of city is this?" Usopp asked.

"This is Clockwork Town," Borodo told them.

"And that must be Trump Castle," Zoro said pointing at the top of the hill. Wait they had to go even higher?

"There's the Diamond Clock," Akisu stated.

"Yeah!" Borodo said clenching his fist. "The most valuable clock in the world! And look at the top of the castle."

"It's the Going Merry," Usopp shouted with glee. He was looking through his googles.

"You can see it?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah, I'm sure of it! It's on top of the castle."

"I can't tell. It's so far." Luffy was holding a hand above his eyes and was squinting trying to make out Merry.

"Hey," Zoro said turning to face Borodo. Addy tuned into that conversation considering that she was back to leaning against Zoro. "It's interesting that you could tell where our ship was from down here.

"What are you suggesting Zoro?" Addy asked him "That these two or at least Borodo stole Merry then sold it or gave it to the Trump Pirates so that we would happen to show up and beat them up so they could steal the Diamond Clock?" Addy raised an eyebrow. "I mean there is not trusting people and then there is really not trusting people. Although…."

"Shit!" Sanji muttered clutching his feet. He was sitting down right in front of Addy. She winced. His feet were bleeding severely. Apparently kicking those rocks did him no favors. They needed to find him shoes and soon before he caused more damage. Sanji's feet were already going to need a good soak and bandaging.

"Your feet," Zoro said.

"Nah, it's nothing!" Sanji replied. He managed to stand back up and walk though Addy did notice he had a slight limp. That wasn't good. Now they had to keep an eye on both her and Sanji. So far the rescue mission was going well.

"Alright!" Luffy announced. "Let's move!"

"Yosha!" Borodo stated. "We'll attack Trump Castle, right?"

"We'll eat."

"Then change clothes," Usopp added in.

As they made their way through town Addy noticed that they were getting a lot of strange looks. Perhaps it was because they weren't used to newcomers or that Zoro was basically the only reason she was upright. Or perhaps it was because the two Thief Brothers would not stop pestering them about attacking Trump castle immediately. Of course, the first thing Luffy finds is a restaurant and they all walk in. Now that Addy thought about it they haven't eat for a few days, not since Merry was kidnapped. As Luffy was ordering everything he could off the menu, Addy wondered how they were going to pay for all this. Glancing around, it seemed like a quaint place, very airy and open to the outdoors. It was then that she glanced an unmarked glass jar beside the doorway and it hit her like a ton of bricks. They were high up in the sky on what could have been a giant mountain before Wind wore it down into a spiral. This was a Wind Legacy community. She thought that no one had one outside of the Grand Line considering there was only about five that Addy knew of, including this one. Well that solved one problem.

"Excuse me," she said stumbling to the man behind the counter who looked rather harried. Considering that he was talking to Luffy it wasn't that big of a surprise. She knew that it was supposed to be a secret but this was sort of an emergency situation. "I was just wondering how good this restaurant is. After all the Gods have deemed you worth to carry on their Legacy so it should be good." The owner went from looking tired to brightening up immediately.

"What family?" he asked in a rather chipper voice. Everyone else seemed confused about what was going on.

"Delphi."

He whistled. "Your family doesn't come by a lot. A shame really, you guys are good people. Way better than Dahvana."

"Thank you and I am somewhat sorry for my Captain's behavior but can I assume that a specific blessing will suffice?"

"Oh absolutely." He handed her a pen and paper. "Can you do something about the rain? Honestly we could use a couple more light drizzles. We have been facing somewhat of a drought."

"I'll see what I can do." She jotted down several lines of what looked like complete gibberish to everyone but her and the owner and handed it back to him. At least she hoped it made sense, her vision was starting to blur "You don't happen to have any mead do you?"

"Freshly made." He tossed her the bottle and Addy glugged it down immediately. The sweet liquid poured down her throat and she felt the shaking stop and the fog come back. Bliss. He tossed her two more and she finished another one and poured the rest into her flask. She was set. "Now you can get whatever you want Captain, guys." As Luffy continued to order and eat everything possible, Addy made her way to the clothes store next door where she made the exact same deal with the shop keep who was a nice old lady. While they didn't have Sea King leather they at least had cloud cotton, which was at least water resistant.

Addy dawned on a white halter top with long light gray pants and a yellow belt shaped like a lightning bolt, so that she could strap her whip and flask to her hip. Soon the others were coming in as well and were rapidly changing out of the wedding clothes.

"Ah this is much easier to move in," Zoro stated. He was now bare chested and wearing long black pants and a black jacket. She took a long appreciative glance. Zoro caught her and gave her a grin. Yep, she knew what she was doing once this was all over.

Sanji was waiting outside for them smoking and once they all left they were ready to rejoin Luffy who was still busy eating. They found him standing outside of a window with a pile of food in his hands. He was happily munching away.

"Hey, Luffy," Usopp asked. "What're you standing there for?" Addy stared through the window and saw… well she wasn't exactly sure what they were. Whatever they were they seemed to impress Usopp. Sanji then decided to wander inside taking a closer look. Zoro and her followed him in. She was curious herself.

"All wind up crafts?" Usopp asked. So that is what they were. The three of them looked around the store while Usopp and Luffy played charades outside.

"Strangers," a gruff voice muttered. Addy noticed that they weren't the only ones in the store. Above them on a balcony was an older man and women having tea. Both had hair that looked strangely like soft served ice cream. "You know nothing of this place. The time for calling this island fun is in the distant past. There was a time when this was the island of dreams."

"We created an autonomous clock to commemorate the birth of our child," the woman said. "We were congratulated by all the people of the island."

"Wow!" Akisu stated. "So you two made the Diamond Clock?"

"But," the man said. "Ever since the Trump Siblings occupied this island, we've been living through Hell every day." Not for the first time Addy cursed the non-intervention policy. It was created so that none of them would end up turning into Goddesses for their respective communities, which included everything that fell into their protection. An outside force would have to intervene if there was a problem. The community protectors could not step in, not directly anyway. Just like the monsters in the hole in Ocean that they were just in, the tower was probably made to protect the community.

Unfortunately the Trump siblings got past it. But Addy thought they would at least put out a bulletin that this was happening. Though depending on how long this has been going on and who their guardian it could just be a time thing. The older her people tend to get the less they realized how quickly time actually passes. Being immortal does have some major problems. "Now we're only making tools for killing! If we rebel Bear King will destroy the island. By occupying the castle that houses the central key, there is no limit to their control."

"That's cruel." Akisu was clenching his fists. The story really upset him. Addy couldn't care less. If it wasn't for the fact that they had both Nami and Merry then they probably would have just sailed along. She will send a paper airplane to Aradia when she gets the chance. She would know whose community this was. Besides it is there mess they should be the ones to get someone to clean it up.

"Fear not!" Borodo announced. "For your problems shall soon be solved! Because the Trump Siblings will be defeated by these guys, the greatest pirates in the world!" Zoro looked at him suspiciously and Addy was starting to agree. Something was up but she brushed it off. Their bounties did recently come out so there was a chance that this was all coincidence. Maybe.

"Hey." Sanji stated. "We haven't agreed to anything."

"That's right." Usopp started up. "We only want to get our stuff back! Can't we just do that?"

"But didn't that just make your blood boil?" Borodo asked them.

"Doesn't it make your blood boil?" Akisu also asked them.

"Not really," Addy answered. "Besides it is out of our hands anyway. Captain is the one who is going to make the decision."

"As long as those bastards are here," Borodo continued stepping in front of Luffy. "Nothing can help this island."

"Nothing can save it!" Akisu exclaimed.

"Well, well!" Usopp stated smugly. "Aren't you just thinking the Diamond Clock will be easier to steal without them around?" Usopp got them there. Though to announce it in front of the people who built it. Borodo immediately placed his hand over Usopp's mouth trying to stop him from talking.

"I see," the women said. "We won't mind. We'd be grateful if you were to take it away. Whenever I see it… it only reminds me of a painful past. However it's quite impossible to steal. Those who have tried before have all perished."

"It's not impossible!" Akisu said. "There's nothing Borodo can't steal!"

"You just don't understand just how terrible the Trump Siblings are!" The woman got up from her seat and started walking towards the bannister, towards them. "If you don't want to die, please leave this island at once!"

"We can't do that," Sanji stated.

"We've got some private business with them," Zoro added in crossing his arms.

"Death creates no future for you!" the woman cried out.

"If you don't risk your life you can't create a future," Luffy said. Her, Sanji, Zoro and Borodo turned towards him, light smiles on their facing. Once again Luffy was proving that he was the future Pirate King. "Right?" He had a big grin on his face before turning to leave. "Let's go!"

"Yeah!" Zoro announced following right behind Luffy.

"As you wish Captain," Addy said following behind the two of them up the stairs.

"Wait for me Nami dear," Sanji muttered coming in behind Addy. She assumed that Usopp was behind him along with Borodo and Akisu. They wove their way through town, climbing ever upwards.

* * *

avatoa: There are a lot of things I like about the 6th movie, one of them being I like it because it is creepy. It shows Luffy and the crew in a situation we would normally never see them in and shows just how much Luffy loves his crew and what happens to him when he loses them and the measures he would go to. We do see it in the series but it is just on another level in the movie at least until the separation on Sabaody. Its not meant for everyone but those whose enjoy darker twists the 6th movie is brilliant.

blackcat711: Not well is the answer. Addy is pretty much useless without alcohol. And that is going to come back and bite her later.

Jag: Well here is the next update. Hope you enjoy it.


	59. Time is Moving Forward Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _This little adventure is going to wrap up soon. We have one more chapter after this before we move on to one of the better filler arcs. I am editing this chapter late a night so there might be more mistakes than normal. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _The remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Okay this is going to take forever," Addy said stopping. The others stopped as well. "I would rather get there and rescue Merry and Nami before nightfall. Does anyone have any ideas?"

"What about that?" Usopp asked pointing to a hot air balloon looking thing. It was essentially a parachute attached to a basket. There was a long rope attaching it to the ground. Addy recoiled but Luffy had already jumped into the thing along with Borodo and Akisu who was setting up the parachute so that they could take off. Zoro, Usopp and Sanji jumped in as well, with Sanji looking disheveled. He was clearly worried.

Addy approached the basket like it was going to come alive and eat her. She carefully and cautiously got in and as soon as she did they took off. Addy yelped and jumped straight into Zoro who wrapped his arms around her.

"Afraid of heights?" he asked.

"Not exactly," Addy replied. "It's when were not above water or in a manmade contraption that it bothers me. In this case it is both."

"It's not that scary," Usopp grinned. "And this is coming from me."

"We are who knows how many feet in the air and the only thing that is keeping us from falling to our deaths and smashing on the ground below is a fragile piece of cloth. Of course I am terrified."

"Why water though?"

"Because if we happen to crash, then at least I will live."

"I thought that hitting water at a certain height was like hitting rock."

Addy blinked at him. "I never said that you would live."`

Usopp seemed to flinch at that but the view overtook his nerves. "Sweet! We've got a bird's eye view of the whole place," he stated.

Addy took a peak at the surrounds, saw how high up there were and promptly buried her face in Zoro. She felt his breathing even out and looked up at him. He had somehow managed to fall asleep. That was a comfort. Wind was rushing around them, mixed in with the laughter of her crew. At least some of them were having a great time.

"Don't get too carried away," Borodo said. "There's a field of landmines down there."

"Why would you say that?" Addy asked and then closed her eyes. Perhaps if she took a leaf out of Zoro's book than everything would be fine. They were saying something about windmills and then there were some metallic noises, like something was being repaired. And then they were talking about Akisu being a mechanical genius.

"Oh my, you're still alive?" Honey Queen called out. Addy opened her eyes and looked around, swallowing her fear and trying to spot her. This could get really bad, really fast. Suddenly she saw this purple liquid coming from a tap on the ground. It spewed out and snaked its way up a windmill before it reformed its self into Honey Queen. Oh they were screwed.

"It's that sexy lady!" Sanji shouted, his eyes turning into hearts. He almost knocked Usopp over the edge in a rush to get a closer look. Sanji was basically leaning out of the basket. Usopp had to grab ahold of him to keep him from falling out. "What should I do first?!"

"Get a grip already!" Usopp told him.

"She ain't no normal human!" Zoro shouted.

"You remember what I told you about Logia Devil Fruits?" Addy asked. "Well there is one right in front of us!"

"Pin Pon!" Boo Jack announced. "Quite right!" He was rolling in between the wires of the windmills. He she could deal with. He threw some sort of poka dotted cloth and Honey Queen caught it draping it around her shoulders as a sort of cloak.

"The Tora Tora Fruit to be precise," she said. "Boo Jack reward them." Boo Jack proceeded to bounce towards them. The guy was like a bouncy ball. Addy could hear a springing noise every time he bounced.

"Waaaaai," Sanji uttered. "Reward me!" He was an absolutely lost cause. "Like Hell." Or perhaps not.

Boo Jack threw a white ball at them. Sanji then proceeded to jump and kick it back towards them. Unfortunately right before his foot made contact massive amounts of black spikes appeared from the ball. They went right through his foot with a squelching noise.

"Sanji!" Luffy yelled. He looked mad, Addy could see his shoulders tense up.

"It went straight through his foot!" Zoro growled.

Blood splattered through the air and his broken sandal came off. Boo Jack landed back on the wire, laughing all the way. Borodo made a grab for him and managed to get him around his ankle.

"You saved him!" Honey Queen exclaimed bouncing right up towards them so that they could look her in the eyes. Her pupils changed into slits. "HOW NAUGHTY!" Purple liquid sprung from her hands and engulfed them. Addy wasn't exactly sure what it was. It wasn't water but she could breathe in it while the others appeared to be holding their breath. That was until she started coughing and Addy realized what it was. Liquid smooth jelly. She was trying to drown them in jelly. What kind of stupid power was this?

However it did achieve its affect, causing Sanji to fall out of the balloon. As soon as he was falling she retracted the liquid so they could watch him smash into the ground. He landed head first, blood splattering out of his mouth and nose. Then there was an explosion.

"SANJI!" both her and Luffy cried out. Black smoke rose up from where he hit the ground. He was leaning out of the basket ready to jump down but Zoro yanked him back.

"Relax," he said. "He can take care of himself. We have others that we need to deal with."

"Zoro is right," Addy huffed getting rid of the rest of the jelly from inside her lungs. "If he isn't dead then they will take him to the castle. If he is dead then we need to go to the castle to kill them. Either way we need to go to the caste."

"Speaking of which," Borodo said. "We are here." Addy looked down. Right below them was a wall that went all around Trump Castle. Borodo landed right beside the only gate in. Addy jumped out first grateful for the feeling of grass on her feet. The others got out as well and stared at what was before them. Usopp sat on the ground cross legged. Luffy started brushing off dust and Zoro crossed his arms. Addy was still trying to catch her breath. It was even harder to breath up here plus the jelly didn't do her any favors. She hoped that it wasn't toxic.

The castle was bizarre to say the least. It was white and decorated with card suits. It looked like some architects nightmare. Like if you stuck bowls with spiky rims on top of each other except the bowls were different sizes so some stuck out more. The edges were inlaid with gold making it seem even more ostentatious.

"Shit!" Usopp exclaimed hitting the ground with his fist a few times. "How did it end up this way? It wouldn't have happened if I had my pachinko balls and slingshot."

"Don't make excuses," Akisu said. "You just aren't brave enough."

"What?"

"If it were Borodo he'd try to save me even if his hands and feet were chopped off."

"Don't listen to him Usopp," Addy said placing her hand on his shoulder. "If anyone should be blamed it should be…." Addy then noticed what Usopp was looking at. Borodo's hand. It was metal. "me," she trailed off. So that was the reason for the gloves.

Borodo grasped his metal hand in his other one. Akisu was looking rather smug shouting praises for Borodo. He was basically bragging about how cool his older brother was.

"What're you bragging about if you always need him to save you?" Usopp asked.

That seemed to have taken the kid aback. "Well… I'm just a kid. I'm not strong enough."

Usopp stood up and Addy backed away towards Zoro who was standing behind them. This was something that Usopp could deal with. "Man or child," he stated. "Strength or none! It doesn't mean a thing once you're out at sea!"

"That's enough," Borodo said placing a hand on Usopp shoulder. He was ending the conversation. "What do you know about Akisu?"

"I just hate those who always think that it's natural for others to save them!"

"It's not like I want to be," Akisu countered.

"What was that?" Usopp asked.

"Well let's get going," Luffy stated raising his arms up and rotating them. That put an end to the conversation. "Hey kid, if you're afraid of dying, go home." Or perhaps not.

"What?" Akisu yelled.

"Coz I ain't going to save a weak little crybaby." He turned towards them his eyes shining bright. The games ended now. Borodo looked startled as if he only now just realized fully who he was dealing with.

"Who's going back? I'm…"

"Okay. Then don't hold back! Gomu Gomu" He started pulling his arm back. "Pistol!" He sent his fist straight through the gate smashing it into a million pieces. "Here I go!" He ran straight through only to encounter the Trump Pirate crew. All of them. "Ah! They're after me!" They started chasing after him as he ran off to the side, though soon they would surround him.

"You think you can do it alone?!" Zoro asked running in as well. Addy followed him in uncoiling her whip. Usopp and Akisu followed her.

The pirate crew were all dressed like playing cards. They really took the theme to a whole new level. Plus they were an absolute pain. For everyone she knocked out two more took their place.

"Oi, Zoro, Addy what do we do now?!" Luffy was flipping around dodging all the attacks that were coming at him. Zoro and Addy both ran up to join him, with Addy clearing the path.

"Leave it to me!" Zoro said grabbing guys and throwing them one at a time into the air. Until he got his hands on a sword, then guys really started flying. Addy cracked her whip in the air and started lashing at the smaller guys causing them to cry out in pain and go down. Together the two of the caused the crowd to back off or at least question their decision to attack them, though it didn't stop the others who were pouring in.

Addy danced through them lashing at every one that got in her way. The whip sang as it cut through the air. She wrapped her whip around one and sent him crashing into the others sending them all flying. Luffy and Zoro were doing the same with theirs as well. Even Borodo was knocking people back.

Suddenly they all stopped and an awful stench wafted through the air. Addy closed off her nose so that she didn't have to smell it. When the men parted to form a corridor she saw what was causing it. Skunk One decided to show his face. He had one of the freakiest grins Addy had ever seen in her life.

"Welcome to Trump Castle!" Skunk One spoke. His voice was somewhat nasally and it was grating on Addy. "Your nakama have been waiting for quite some time gas." He pointed up towards the castle where Addy suspected they were being kept. The rest of the Trump crew started to clear away.

"What?" Usopp asked. Addy looked up to where he was pointing and her heart dropped. Even with her poor eyesight she could make it out. Sanji was on a cross.

"You utter bastards!" She yelled her grip tightening on her whip. "Do you know how painful of a death that is?!"

"Sanji!" Luffy exclaimed. Zoro was gritting his teeth and Usopp mouth was wide open. They now had a time limit. The Straw Hats had to get Sanji down before it broke him.

"But Bear King seems to be in a good mood-gas," Skunk One exclaimed. "Now, who shall be the next to be captured –gas?" He emitted a yellow gas from a tank on his back. Everyone reacted violently to the smell except for Addy who blocked up her nose in case. It still made her feel incredibly dizzy. "It's Devil Gas-gas. If it gets in your system, you'll be paralyzed and totally helpless-gas. I'm full, FULL of gas-gas!" She quickly tried to make her way out of the gas. Being paralyzed was not something she wanted to experience. Addy felt it start to affect her. Her reactions were slowed and it felt like her body was not listening to her correctly.

"Hey, he's not joking!" Zoro exclaimed. "If he lets out that much!" He stumbled clutching his side. If this was affecting Zoro than Addy was screwed. It was starting to get into her joints. She felt like they were being filled with grit. "Luffy!"

"Ah," Luffy said. "It's no use. I don't feel like doing anything."

"OI!"

Suddenly the gas started to clear and Addy sighed in relief. It still felt like her body was pumped full of sand but at least it wasn't increasing. She looked up and saw Usopp holding on to the back of Skunk One, trying to block the gas as best as he could. Skunk One tried to shake Usopp off but he would not let go.

"I'll take care of him!" Usopp yelled. "Don't worry, just hurry and go!" Skunk One let out another burst of gas and started flying off with Usopp in tow. Not wanting to waste his courage the rest of them ran into the castle, despite the Trump crew trying to block their entrance. They continued fighting them as they ran up a stone staircase, Luffy and Zoro in the front while Borodo and her dealt with any stragglers. It turned out that the castle was actually mostly open and that the staircase wrapped around the outside protected by stone walls. That meant that Nami, Usopp , Sanji and Merry must be on the top floor. They were just leaving guys lying on the stair case. Speed was of the essence.

Eventually they reached a tunnel that snaked into another part of the castle. It was like the ribcage of a snake. This place was huge.

"Hey, up there," Luffy pointed up. Addy looked and saw that Usopp was being crucified besides Sanji. They did not have time for this. It was then that she spotted something else running on top of the tunnel. She came to a stop and stared at it. It appeared to be running on all fours.

"Addy?" Luffy questioned slowing down and looking at her.

"Go!" she said jumping up so that she was standing on top of the tunnel. "I will hold off this one. Rescue the others!" Luffy and Zoro nodded and continued running through the tunnel up into the castle.

Addy stared at the new threat before for. It was now on two legs doing all sorts of flips towards her. She grimaced and clutched at on the handle of her whip. With the jelly and the gas slowing her down, along with the fact that they were so high up chances were that she wouldn't be able to defeat him. But she had to try.

* * *

hellspam: It has been awhile. I hope the job hunting has gone smoothly. May you have luck with that and whatever other stuff you are up to. :)


	60. Time is Moving Forward Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _So I know this is like a day late but I was completely swamped yesterday. I will still update tomorrow so don't worry about that. This concludes this arc and we are moving next to Coming up Dragons. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Chat Ten!" she called out. "Stop playing games and fight me!"

"Wellwelllookslikealittlemousywantstoplay," he snickered flipping right in front of her. He had long claws on his hands and feet that made clicking noises as he walked. "Thoughitlookslikelittlemousyitnotfeelingtoogood."

He was right unfortunately. Addy was panting heavily and she could barely keep her eyes open. Still she had to do something. She cracked her whip in the air and attempted to charge at him but felt something wrap around her ankles causing her to stumble. She looked down and saw metal wire come out from the top of the tunnel, wrapping themselves around her ankles."

"Seriously?" she huffed. "I am barely standing here and you still have to resort to tricks to defeat me? Just how weak are you?"

"Tsktsk," Chat Ten said gleefully. "Littlemousyshouldnotmakefunwhencaughtinmouseytrap." He brought out a staff that was strapped to his back and extended it, making it slightly longer than he was and he was taller than Zoro. All Addy could do was watch as he whacked the staff straight into her head. She felt herself collapse, the wires around her ankles coming undone. In the last move she could she recoiled the whip and placed it back on her hip, an automatic reflex at this point. She felt arms wrap around her and soon her vision faded into blackness.

…

Addy groaned as she felt herself come too. There were spots floating in her eyes and she felt like she had been slammed into a brick wall. Her wrists and ankles were on fire and her whole body wanted to collapse. Blinking a few times she saw what was going on.

She was stuck on a cross between Zoro and Sanji, both of who looked like they had been dragged through hell. Both were covered in dried blood. It seemed like Zoro was stabbed by something and well as sliced up since there were numerous cuts all across his body. Usopp was on Sanji's other side and he seemed to be coming too as well.

"What's going on?" Usopp asked. He sounded groggy.

"I don't know," Addy murmured.

" _Oh thank word you are awake_ ," Merry said. She sounded relieved.

"Merry?" Addy replied. Was she close enough now to hear her?

" _Don't do that again. I thought… I thought… I thought you were dead. Yo-you wouldn't answer and I…_ "

"It's alright. I'm alive. We are all alive."

"Not for long," Honey Queen called out. Addy turned to face forward. Nami was looking back at her, Addy could see the fear in her orange eyes. She was still in the wedding dress and it did not look like it had been damaged. At least one of them was unscathed. Nami was with the Trump Pirate crew with all of them inside what looked like the main room of the compound.

"Where's the 30,000,000 beli guy?" Bear King asked.

"By now he's been crushed under the ceiling,"Pin Joker stated. Addy growled but was unable to do anything.

"WewereabletoshowBearKing'sgenuinestrengthwithouthimfighting," Chat Ten laughed.

"And now you can marry her right?" Honey Queen asked. Addy felt sick. How dare they? How DARE they?

"I'll go immediately to prepare the wedding party-gas," Skunk One spoke.

"Alright then!" Bear King said. "The main attraction will be the testing our ultimate killing machine, the King cannon!" He removed the tarp from a giant machine and Addy almost laughed. It was a cannon alright. But to think that one could conquer the Grand Line with that. "The target will be those four!" Bear King pointed towards them. Oh Ocean. She was about to be killed by idiots. Riley would never let her hear the end of it.

"What did you say?" Nami asked.

"And then you'll become the bride of the Pirate King." Addy was pretty sure that Luffy and Nami would never marry. EVER. The image was pretty hilarious though. Bear King gently stuck a finger under Nami's chin tilting it up towards him. "How's that? You must overjoyed." Could none of them speak properly? Was it really that difficult?

Nami then kicked him in the forehead, rage coming off of her. "Who the hell would marry something like you?" The dress slid down her leg.

"Are you aware of what you're saying?"

"Compared to being married to something like you I'd rather be killed with them!"

"Nami," Addy whispered as Bear King smacked Nami. Addy started struggling against her binding but all that did was cut into her skin causing her to bleed. Nami hit the ground hard and Addy could hear her cry out in pain.

"That can be arranged," Bear King stated. "Cancel the wedding party and make it a memorial to my broken heart! And execute this woman along with them!" They tossed Nami so that she was sitting right in front of them while Bear King climbed into his cannon.

"Nami," Addy stated. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied. "What about you?"

"Honestly I have been better."

" _That's the understatement of the century_ ," Merry remarked.

"I think there is a valuable lesson here if we get out of this alive," Addy said.

"What?" Usopp asked.

"We really shouldn't go on vacation."

"Agreed," Nami and Usopp replied together.

The cannon started to rumble and chug. Steam poured out of the vents and Addy felt the whole room start to shake. Bear King started laughing as the steam increased. There was a dinning sound that echoed throughout the area. The cannon was definitely powering up. Addy closed her eyes and smiled. While she didn't manage to fulfill her promise at least she would die surrounded by her nakama and that was more than she could ask for.

Zoro and Sanji had woken up at this point as well. Zoro glanced at her worry, fear and anger in his eyes as well as something else. Something more. There was a pang in Addy heart and for one brief moment she wished that she had more time to spend with him. Just one more quiet moment together. That was all. That moment left and she went back to accepting death. How long had she waited for this? It felt like a millennia. Zoro however was growling, pulling at his bonds but he was as trapped as the rest of them. Addy thought about how much harder this was for him, considering that he hadn't accomplished his dream. How much harder it was for all of them. They had things they still wanted to do in life. She could see the anger and the fear on all her nakama faces as more steam started pouring from the cannon, this time out of the cannon itself.

Suddenly there was this grinding sound and a giant rock started being lifted up in front of them serving as a shield from the cannon. It also muffled all of the sound coming from the other room. There was something about dynamite but Addy couldn't catch it. Between that and the rumbling going on Addy was surprised that she could hear anything.

"That voice!" Usopp exclaimed.

"What?" Addy asked. "You can actually hear?"

"Borodo," Sanji stated.

"He really does want to die!" Zoro exclaimed. The rest of them turned to face Zoro as best as they could. "Turns out Addy was right, he did take the ship."

"Wait I really was right about that?" she asked. "You're not serious?"

"Quite. It turns out that this is Akisu home island."

"And he knows this how?"

Zoro blinked. "He didn't actually explain that."

"Of course he didn't." Borodo and Bear King were talking with each other about something. Addy didn't really care at the moment and instead turned her focus to figuring out how to get them out. Unfortunately since the only one that was free to walk around was Nami this could be a bit of a problem.

Suddenly the metal sheet before them vibrated, as if it was hit with something hard. Nami let out a gasp and Addy hoped that was the cannon though she somehow doubted that. She thought she heard a scream of pain. Another dent appeared in the metal, this one much more noticeable. More and more dents started showing and the screams increased until they finally stopped.

"Hey…" Usopp said. "What do you think is going on?"

"I'm not sure we want to know," Addy replied. Where was Luffy when they needed him? Unexpectedly there was more rumbling, though it seemed to be coming from below them. Everything was vibrating including Addy herself. There was a loud bang like thunder in the other room and the sound of crumbling rock.

"That better be Captain," she muttered as the glass smashed right before her eyes and what looked like hollow cubes of rock came flying out past them and over the edge. They sent up clouds as dust as they crashed into the ground. A column of black smoke curved upwards into the air.

"LUFFY!" Usopp cried out in joy. Addy smiled and let her head hang. Looks like they were going to have more adventures.

"Took you long enough, jerk," Sanji stated.

"LUFFY!" Nami yelled.

"Slow ass," Zoro muttered.

"Good to see you Captain," Addy said. "But can you get us down?"

Then there was a giant explosion right in front of them causing the metal sheet to completely disintegrate. The shrapnel flew everywhere taking out everything in its path and weakening the restraints allowing Addy to pull herself free right before the cross was smashed. All she could see was black smoke as she fell to the ground landing carefully on her feet. She unfurled her whip and glanced around trying to see if any of the others made it out alive. Well there was only one path and that was forward. Stepping through the smoke she managed to break through into the main room where the Trump Pirates, the Thief Brothers and their Captain were all standing.

"You know when I asked you to rescue us, that wasn't what I meant," Addy said. Her white clothes were now clearly a shade of gray and what was gray was now black. She unfurled her whip and cracked it in the air.

The others stepped out of the smoke as well, looking equally disheveled. "Luffy!" Usopp grumbled. "You're always so reckless!"

"Forget about it," Sanji stated. "He got us out, didn't he?"

"Yeah, seems that way," Zoro said rotating his arm, most likely checking to see if anything was broken. If all of them came out of that unscathed it would be a miracle. But then again they were the Straw Hats.

"What?" Luffy responded, his hands on the back of his head in a relaxed manner. "You all came out fine."

"You're disappointed?!" Usopp yelled at him.

It was then that the Trump Pirates decided to attack them. Addy swiftly dodged a staff blow aimed for her head and took several steps back.

"Sorry," she said grinning. "But the same attack isn't going to work on me twice."

Chat Ten giggled. " ."

"You know I can't understand you right? It's like your talking gibberish. Here's a hint when trying to insult someone actually make sure that they can hear you. I would give an example but I think the concept is a bit over your head."

"Littlemousyisgoingtodienow." He charged towards her and Addy swiftly dodged, trying to create some distance. Chat Ten insisted on staying close however giving Addy less room to maneuver. Out of the corner of her eye she saw that Sanji had regained his shoes and Zoro his swords. Luffy was also fighting the Bear King. Time to kick things into high gear.

"If it's a close fight you want than it's a close fight you'll get," Addy said drawing her blade out of her whip handle and flipping it around so that the whip was trailing behind her. She hit the staff straight on with the blade. A look of surprised crossed his face and Addy started pushing back.

"Lookslikelittlemousyhassomebite."

"I have no idea what you are saying!" She was really pushing back now and she felt Chat Ten start to cave. When out of nowhere Boo Jack came flying causing the two of them to break apart, with Sanji racing after Boo Jack. There were now several feet away from each other.

"Thank you Sanji," she said sheathing the blade and causing her whip to now face forward. "Let's see if we can make you dance." She started lashing at Chat Ten feet causing him to move around like a lunatic.

"Thisendsnow," Chat Ten shouted jumping into the air.

"You really shouldn't have done that," Addy replied. "Lautan Tarik." She curved her whip in the air wrapping it around Chat Ten mid jumped. She then pulled down as hard as she could causing him to smash into the ground head first. He let out a cry of pain and a few whimpers. "Kembali." That finished him off as Addy saw blood spurt into the air and recoiled her whip placing it back on her hip.

She took a shot from her flask and surveyed her surroundings. Sanji and Zoro had finished their fights a little bit before she did though she wasn't exactly sure where Sanji was. Nami had trapped Honey Queen in a container and Usopp had beaten Skunk One. The only one left was the Bear King. She walked over to Zoro, dodging Luffy and Bear King. Zoro was resting where they were trapped on the cross after his fight and he didn't look to good.

"Hey," he murmured to her.

"Hey yourself," she said sitting down beside him. He basically collapsed onto her, using her to sit up straight. She didn't mind in the slightest, after all she had done the same thing to him numerous times.

"Saw your fight briefly. Didn't know that whip had a blade."

"Yeah, comes in handy sometimes. Don't really use it that often but it's good for close combat."

"Perhaps I could give you some pointers. Help you improve your form."

She smiled at him, "You know I think that I would like that. We'll set up a training schedule once we are all patched up."

"Shouldn't take more than a day or two."

"For you maybe."

She then heard Luffy scream and looked over to his fight. Steam was coming off of the Bear King and it looked like his arm was glowing red hot. So he also had a Devil Fruit then. Luffy attempted to launch a punch back at him but the Bear King caught it in his glowing fist. Luffy was trying desperately to pull his fist out of the Bear King's grip. When he let go, Luffy went rolling several feet back clutching his hand.

He tried to punch Luffy again, with Luffy running as fast as he could away when Borodo called out, "BEAR KING!" Borodo then launched the cannon. Bear King barely dodged the cannon ball in time and it went sailing out a hole in the wall. She felt a disturbance in Ocean causing her to shiver. Zoro looked at her concerned but she waved him off. There was then yelling going back and forth between Bear King and Borodo. Bear King pulled out a gun out of his jacket and fired, intending to kill Borodo. Instead however it hit Akisu, who jumped in the bullets path, sending him straight through a glass window. Borodo ran out to save him and that left only the Straw Hats and Bear King. Akisu would be fine, he had his big brother with him.

Luffy was beyond furious now. Anger rolled off of him. Bear King had just sealed his fate. What he was saying about Akisu wasn't helping anything either. She was half tempted to go and try to beat him up herself but she knew Luffy could handle it. Addy was also concerned for Zoro. He seemed to be fighting something off.

"You alright?" she asked him.

"Never better," he replied.

"You know you don't have to lie to me right?" He looked at her curiously. "I won't think you're any weaker if you telling me you are hurting. I actually think you are stronger for it."

"I am fine."

Addy chuckled. "Of course you are. Tell you what. Once we get back on Merry we can patch each other up after I send a letter. How does that sound?"

"Do you mean actually patch up or…"

"How about both. Both sound good to you?"

"Sounds fantastic."

"You two having fun," Nami asked. Apparently she now joined the party.

"Oh loads," Addy answered. "We are just talking about how many bandages he is going to need."

"It looks like you could use a few yourself."

Luffy then threw Bear King into the wall causing half the building to start collapsing. Addy thought she saw water rushing down the side.

" _HELP_!" Merry cried out. " _I don't want to interrupt your moment but can you please save me! I am about to fall!_ "

"Merry!" Addy exclaimed jumping up. "Zoro can you move?"

"Of course," he answered getting up. His movements were sluggish however. They also had another problem as Bear King was still conscious, walking through the waterfall that was created. He then attempted to use the cannon on Luffy who grabbed the massive cannon ball and went flying off.

"LUFFY!" Sanji shouted. When did he get here? He came racing towards them.

Luckily before Luffy went flying too far he wrapped his legs around one of the remaining columns twisting his whole body like a spring. He then launched himself back, cannon ball in tow with a cry of "Gomu Gomu no Screw!" The cannon ball hit Bear King straight in the chest and it started to break and crack the floor below him with all the pressure until it finally broke sending Bear King plummeting down. Not a second later a massive explosion appeared and there was this loud screeching noise, like metal being torn apart. Addy thought she heard a series of explosions.

"W-What the?" Sanji stated.

"It can't be?" Nami exclaimed. "The island's key?!"

"The key?!"

"We should probably get out of here," Addy said.

"Agreed," they all said.

"Hey, Luffy!" Sanji called out.

"Luffy!" Usopp yelled.

"Luffy!" Zoro shouted.

"Captain!" Addy screamed.

"Luffy!" Nami cried throwing his hat to him. That finally got his attention and he grabbed it placing it back on his head. "We need to go now!"

Together they climbed up to the Going Merry where Usopp was already waiting for them. Addy dashed towards them helm, prepared for whatever might happen. The rest of the crew was busy setting up a parachute.

"You ready?" she asked Merry.

" _As ready as I can be_ ," Merry answered.

Amidst all the crashing and the chaos Addy thought she heard something. The sounds of music filled the air. It was coming from the Diamond Clock and it was the same tune that came from Akisu's music box. It was melodious and sweet and it brought images of autumn breezes, falling leaves and rebirth. Just as suddenly that it started playing it stopped and the rumbling and grinding started up again. Addy grabbed onto the pole and connected with Merry.

She felt as she started plummeting through the air rocking and debris falling all around her. The island itself was coming apart. This wasn't going to be easy to explain. Addy felt as Merry began to slow down and Addy guided her so that she would land in a safe part of Ocean. That was easier said than done. They landed gently in the water pretty close to the other ships that managed to escape and not far from the wreckage of the island. It was a complete and utter disaster. However it was soon off in the distance as Addy guided Merry to a current that would take them far away from here. They were back on track for the Grand Line.

" _Hey,_ _there is a tiny boat coming to meet us_ ," Merry said. " _It's the guy who kidnapped me._ _Apparently he knows you guys_?"

"Yeah it's Borodo. We are sort of friends. I guess…" Addy answered.

" _Oh.. okay then_. _He is saying something about no longer having a partner_."

"His brother I assume."

" _You mean the kid that is on the ship with us_?"

"Yeah him…. Wait… he is on the ship with us? How?"

" _He jumped on when we were passing by the other ships._ "

"And you didn't say anything?"

" _He's just a kid, what harm could he do? Anyway he is back with his brother and they are sailing off now_."

"Oh good."

"Hey Addy," Nami said coming into the lounge. "You look like you could use some rest."

"Speak for yourself," Addy retorted.

"I'm good, those guys didn't do anything to me. You're the ones who spent most of your time fighting."

"Speaking of which, both Zoro and Sanji got themselves pretty banged up. Mind looking after Sanji while I take care of Zoro?"

"I see where this is going. You just want some alone time with him."

Addy raised her hands up off the pole. "You caught me, now will you, do it?"

"For you sure. I won't even charge you interest."

"Thanks a million."

Now set in their course Addy walked down into their workshop. Opening her desk door and taking out a quill and an ink well. She started writing her letter.

 _Aradia of Lyra_

 _I am writing this to inform you of a problem that has arisen in one of your Legacy communities. Notably the one in East Blue located on what was formerly known as Clockwork Island. It appears that for some time they have been plagued by a group known as the Trump Pirates. My crew and I have dealt with this threat but in the process have destroyed the island. Most if not all of the people in the community have survived, the only ones who have perished being members of the Trump crew. As the threat is no longer occurring it would be proper for you to intervene._

 _May your joys be as deep as Ocean, your problems as light as His foam._

 _Adamaris of Delphi_

She folded up the letter so that it was a paper airplane. As soon as she got back on deck she tossed it into Wind. It would get where it needed to go. Addy then went in search of her quarry and found him sleeping beside the figure head.

"Zoro," she said. He opened his eyes immediately. "We should probably start the bandaging up."

He jumped to his feet and gave her a grin. "What are we waiting for?" He then took her hand and led her to the crows nest. This was going to be a fun time.

* * *

Lautan Tarik: Ocean Pull

Kembali: Return

Reviews

hellspam: I think that is one of my favorite Addy lines. Just imagining the reactions from everyone else, its the sort of thing that fits perfectly well with One Piece.

Jag: This isn't even one of the craziest movies. That title belongs to movie 7. That is going to be a fun arc to write.


	61. Coming up Dragons Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _Somehow this has become my longest chapter by far and probably one of my favorites. I got a soft spot for this filler arc so lets see where it goes. As always please review and let me know what you think. I am always open to suggestions._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy rolled her stiff arms working out the kinks as she replaced the bandages on Zoro while he did the same with her. It was only yesterday that they left Clockwork Island behind them and they were still pretty beat up. Or at least Addy was, Zoro was practically healed already. Nami was busy patching Sanji up right next to them while Usopp was on look out and Luffy sitting on his special seat. Addy could hear Merry babbling about stuff and Addy occasionally chuckled. It was a normal peaceful day late in the afternoon. So what was about to go wrong?

Nami finished bandaging Sanji and she went back to look at her map. They should still be on course but it was always good to check.

"Nami!" Luffy called out. "Aren't we in the Grand Line yet?"

"We only just left Clockwork Island yesterday. It'll take a few more days. Wait a little longer," she responded.

"Okay!" He had a big grin on his face as if he just heard the best news in the world.

"What nice weather!" Sanji commented. He was standing up and looking a lot better. After soaking his feet for several hours in a healing bath, he was all fit and ready to go. "That storm seems like a dream."

"That's weather for you," Addy replied. "Though it has been nice for the past few days."

"Hey! Usopp shouted. "I see a flock of birds to starboard!"

"A flock of birds?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah. I also see something kind of big in the water. I can't see it well. Wonder what it is."

"Maybe a fish?"

"A small boat? It could be a big fish too, but…"

"I often hear that seabirds flock above fish," Sanji added in.

"Fish?!" Luffy exclaimed. He looked absolutely excited at that prospect.

"Luffy! Let's have them for lunch."

" _I actually think there is a boat in the middle of them_ ," Merry mentioned.

"Captain is going to be disappointed then," Addy muttered as Luffy stretched out his arms towards the flock of birds. It was impressive. She wondered how far he could stretch. Zoro meanwhile had fallen asleep. How he could do that was anyone guess.

"Whoa!" Usopp exclaimed. "Now that's a stretch!"

Addy got up and walked towards Sanji curious to see what Luffy would grab. "His body sure is convenient," Sanji stated.

"I caught it," Luffy said the grin on his face growing wider. "It's pretty big!"

"Nice, Luffy!" Nami remarked. The object came closer towards them though Addy could still not make it out.

" _Um Addy?"_ Merry said. " _I don't think that is a fish._ "

"You don't say," Addy uttered as she walked closer to Luffy. Whatever the object was she wasn't about to be hit by it.

"Hold on a second…" Sanji sputtered. "What're you going to do now?" Sanji barely dodged out of the way of Luffy's arm which went straight smack into Zoro sending him flying off the ship. He landed with a splash just as Luffy arm snapped back into place.

"Oh…" Luffy said. "Sorry, Zoro."

"Dumbass!" Sanji yelled at him as Addy dived overboard to fetch there wayward swordsman. He seemed to be in a state of shock as Addy grabbed ahold of him.

"I'm gonna…. cut him down… someday," he uttered before Addy dived down to launch them back on the ship.

"Sure you are," Addy responded. She launched herself to the surface with Zoro in tow and landed on deck as best as she could which was pretty well considering she also had Zoro. She only stumbled a little.

Nami, Usopp and Sanji were right next to whatever Luffy brought in. Putting Zoro down, Addy walked over and saw it. A little girl with a long blond braid dressed in what used to be yellow dress with a white hat was lying on their deck. This probably wasn't good news.

"Hey, look," Sanji said. "That's no fish."

"It's a girl!" Nami exclaimed.

Luffy walked up as well hand on his hat. "Oh?" he asked. "Is she a fishperson? Where's her web?"

"You idiot," Usopp uttered. "Just how does she look like a fishperson?"

"Whatever the case we should probably put her back," Addy said. "Before kidnapping gets added to our list of crimes."

" _Don't be mean,_ " Merry responded. " _She is probably lost, hungry and cold_."

"Fine we will feed her and warm her up then let her go."

"Why was a little girl in a small boat like that?" Nami asked.

"There could be several reasons," Addy said gently picking up the girl. "And I don't think any of them are good."

"Let's see if we can fix her up then. Sanji?"

"Yes Nami dear?" he asked, his eyes turning into hearts.

"Would you mind fixing something up for her," Nami asked as Addy walked with the girl into the lounge. Everyone else including Zoro walked behind her and got themselves settled in various places. Sanji got busy in the kitchen while Addy laid the girl on top of a crate. It wasn't the most comfortable spot but it would allow all of them to watch over her. Nami placed one of their extra blankets on top to keep her warm before sitting down at the table. Addy soon joined her and watch as Sanji prepared something. It looked like soup. Luffy sat right next to her while Zoro sat on the floor and leaned back taking yet another nap or at least trying to. Usopp went to wet a cloth to place on the girl's forehead Soon the smell of food was wafting through the air filling up the kitchen. Addy thought she could almost see it drifting through the air. Not a moment after Sanji started cooking the girl sat up quickly bonking Usopp chin and sending him spiraling onto the ground.

"Ouch!" the girl screamed clutching her head. They all turned to look at their guest.

"So you've come to?" Nami asked. "Seems you're doing better than I expected. Does it hurt anywhere?"

"You must be hungry," Sanji said. The two of them would make amazing parents. "I'm cooking soup right now."

"Lucky!" the girl exclaimed a grin on her face and fists clenched. She was clearly happy about something.

"Were you in a shipwreck or something?" Nami asked. "You could've been in big trouble. What's your name?"

"When you ask someone questions, you should give your name first," the girl uttered.

Nami looked slightly taken aback before chuckling. "Good point, my name is Nami. The one who is cooking the soup in the kitchen is Sanji."

"Hi," Sanji exclaimed.

"The one with a scary face wearing a bellyband is Zoro," Nami continued.

"Shut up," he muttered.

"The one who's unconscious over there is Usopp. The woman sitting next to me is Addy and….."

"I'm Luffy," Luffy interrupted. "I'm the captain of this pirate ship."

Now it was the girls turn to looked shocked. Her eyes went wide and her mouth hung open. "What?!" she yelled out. "Pirates?!"

"Don't worry yourself," Addy said. "We can barely be called pirates. Only two of us have bounties."

"We're heading out to the Grand Line," Luffy told her.

The girl didn't move in the slightest. It was like she was frozen there. "What's wrong?" Nami asked.

"She isn't moving," Luffy stated.

" _Should we be concerned_?" Merry wondered.

"We did just tell her we were pirates," Addy said.

"What're we going to do with this kid?" Zoro inquired.

"Ahhh, well what should we do?" Luffy pondered. "Let's think about it tomorrow."

Addy rolled her eyes. It wasn't that she didn't like kids, it's that she didn't like useless people. And most kids were particularly useless.

" _This is exciting,_ " Merry exclaimed. " _I always wanted to have a kid on board. They seem like so much fun_."

"Captain are you sure that's the best idea?" Addy asked. "I mean this ship isn't exactly child proof."

" _Don't be like that_ ," Merry said. " _It will be great_."

"Can't think of what else to do," Luffy replied as the soup was placed down, first in front of Addy and Nami and then the others. Usopp woke up as well grumbling and rubbing his head though the soup soothed him.

"Hope you enjoy," Sanji said. "It's a fish soup."

They all dug in with Luffy gobbling his down and then demanding seconds and soon entire pots. The girl however stared at it like it was poison not that Addy blamed her. It was probably good survival instincts. By the time they were done with everything the sun had set and the girl still had not touched her food. Other than forcing it down her throat Addy wasn't sure what to do. She was just staring at them widely like they were about to attack her or something. Sanji and Nami both looked concerned glancing worryingly at the girl.

"Well that was great Sanji," Addy stated.

"Thank you Addy sweet," she replied gushing. He was hovering over her. Addy fondly rolled her eyes and gently shoved him.

"Anyway I am going up to the crows nest. See you guys in the morning."

"Night," they all called back at her. She waved at them as she left the room and climbed up to the crows nest.

" _You know I think I really like kids_ ," Merry said. " _I can't wait for you guys to start having your own_."

"I think you're going to have to wait a long time for that Merry," Addy replied. Seagulls had started landing around the edge of the crows nest. There must not be land for a while yet.

" _You must have thought about it. Just imagine little Zoros and Addys padding around the deck, getting into everything."_

"Little Addy. Singular."

" _Only one_?"

"You know how my people are with siblings. It gets messy. Besides I am not even sure who the donor is going to be yet."

If Merry had eyes to roll Addy was positive that is what she was doing. " _Yes you do. It is bleeding obvious."_

"Look just because Zoro and I are sleeping together doesn't mean that he is going to be the donor. I mean sure he is strong, loyal, courageous, and the future Greatest Swordsman in the World as well as the first mate to the future Pirate King but there are still a lot of options out there."

" _Riiiight. Sure there are. There is also the fact that you are totally falling for him._ "

Addy sputtered and tried to find words. "I am…. what? No…. It's just benefits. We are together on the ship and it's just…."

" _Keep telling yourself that. You will realize the truth soon enough._ "

Addy glared and took a shot out of her flask before leaning back and closing her eyes. Merry had clearly taken some crazy pills and Addy would sort it out later. Right now, she wanted sleep, the injuries weren't going to heal without it. She sensed the others turning out the light and heading to bed as well with the usual chaos that followed. There was no need to set out a watch, Merry would inform her if anything approached. It took a while for everyone to quiet down but soon enough they had all settled down. Addy just started to feel herself drift off when a loud snapping noise followed by a scream coming out of the lounge.

Addy jumped down immediately wondering what the hell was going on and hurried towards the lounge.

" _It's Sanji's Luffytrap,_ " Merry told her. _"Luffy has snuck into the kitchen and startled the girl_."

"Brilliant," Addy grumbled as she got to the lounge. She was apparently the first one here. The girl was kneeling down on the floor wrapped in the blanket holding onto the back of her head. Addy walked up to the lantern and turned it on. The girl immediately turned to look at her looking like a scared cat. Now that Addy could see, she saw Luffy struggling in the makeshift trap that Sanji created. They should just really get a locked fridge. That would be way easier. At this point the Sanji had arrived as well and the both of them were standing above Luffy.

"You again?" Sanji asked.

"Who else would it be?" Addy responded.

"You never learn no matter how many times I tell you, Luffy." He was still struggling to get out of the trap which was essentially a giant Luffy sized mouse trap. "Can't you get it through your thick skull?" Sanji then finally noticed the girl. "Hm, what are you doing?" The girl stared at them nervously.

"I think I know why she is here," Addy said opening up the fridge and tossing a piece of meat out for Luffy. "You were trying to get food when our Captain surprised you weren't you?" The girl shook her head but her lies were about as good as Usopp's.

"Yum!" Luffy announced chewing at the meat intensely. Sanji also brought out some bread and fish and Addy sat down as well, next to Luffy. The girl was sitting across from her. She was looking rather dejected. At some point Sanji slipped out of his black jacket and it was hanging up on the hook that Usopp installed earlier that day.

"If you ask, I'll make something for you," Sanji said. "So, like I told you, don't take food without asking."

"But I'm hungry," Luffy sputtered.

"You're always hungry Captain," Addy stated pinching the bridge of her nose. There was a grumbling sound coming from across the table. Looks like Luffy wasn't the only one who was hungry. The girl had a blush covering her face.

"What's wrong?" Sanji asked. "Aren't you eating?" The girl turned her head away. "You didn't eat this afternoon, either. Why're you holding back? I'm telling ya, it's not poisoned or anything." She just started shaking her head back and forth wildly before setting back down. Sanji looked deflated, this was seriously bugging him. "If you just sit there like that, he'll finish everything." Luffy had already cleared off the three plates in front of him and was reaching for a fourth.

"If you're not eating, I'll eat it!" Luffy exclaimed grabbing onto the fourth dish.

The girl snatched the soup from his hands and downed it all in one go. Luffy looked somewhat perturbed but Addy had to applaud the girl. Not everyone could take food from Luffy.

"Yum!" The girl exclaimed, she was already looking brighter and staring at the now empty plate in amazement.

"Of course! Sanji's the cook I picked!" Luffy stated. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Sanji puff up with pride and bow slightly.

"I've never eaten anything this good!"

"You're finally smiling," Nami said leaning against the doorway. So the rest of the crew had joined as well. Looks like they were going to have a late-night meal. Usopp was leaning down while Zoro was standing just outside. "You're eating again Luffy?"

"Is it really all that surprising?" Addy chuckled.

"I didn't eat that much for lunch," Luffy stated.

"Which was not that long ago."

"You emptied two pots, didn't you?" Usopp reminded him.

"I did?" The rest of them walked into the room and Nami and Usopp was standing over the girl. Zoro was still hanging out in the back.

"You got scared when you heard we're pirates, didn't you?" Nami asked her.

"W-Well…" the girl responded.

"Well, that's a natural reaction towards pirates these days."

"You're not going to sell me off?"

"Not unless you a noble or Marines kid," Addy responded. "And even then we would probably only use you for blackmail to steal your families money."

Nami gave her a hard glare. "Ignore her. She just hates people. There is no way we would do that," Nami said.

Meanwhile Usopp and Zoro started bickering over something causing dust to be kicked up all over the room. "Ahh! That's enough!" Nami announced. The girl was laughing nervously at their antics as if she wasn't quite sure what to make of it.

"We have more, mademoiselle," Sanji said leaning towards her.

"At least this isn't the kind of pirate ship you're thinking of," Nami stated. ""Don't worry."

"It really isn't," Addy added in.

The girl broke out into a smile again, "Another plate please!" she asked.

"As you wish," Sanji answered as he prepared it for her.

"Me, too!" Luffy stated.

"Do it yourself!" Sanji yelled at him.

"You meanie."

Everyone else settled around the table as well enjoying each other's company. Zoro sat down next to her and together they managed to swipe a decent amount of food away from Luffy and were guarding it between the two of them. The others were soon doing the same as well with the girl joining in. Merry was laughing up a storm as the Straw Hats navigated yet another meal. At some point after all the food was gone instead of moving back to sleep they just elected to sleep here on top of each other in a sort of giant pile right in the middle.

Eventually the sun decided that it should rise and woke everyone up. Luffy and Zoro set off to pull the anchor up while Addy navigated herself to the helm. Sanji, Nami and Usopp were busy with the sails. Once Addy clutched the pole she felt as the sailed unfurled and the anchor placed back on board. She drank down another shot and felt as Merry started drifting across Ocean. She also heard the banging of pots and pans as the girl fiddled around in the kitchen. As long as she didn't set anything on fire Addy did not see any harm in it. That was until the explosion which rocked the ship and black smoke started filling up the room.

"What did you do?" Addy coughed, grabbing the girl and pulling the door open basically throwing the girl and herself out of it. Smoke poured out of the room and the girl was covered with ash. At least they were both female so Sanji couldn't get to mad. Addy was more afraid of Nami however.

"Hey!" Sanji called down from the crows nest. "What happened?"

"Don't ask me," Addy replied. "She was messing around in the kitchen and the next thing I know smoke started filling the room."

"I was preparing a meal!" the girl exclaimed. Apparently not very well. Smoke was still pouring out of the room.

"What?" Sanji asked.

"Everyone! Breakfast is ready!" The girl was waving her arm beckoning everyone. Addy sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. Forget Nami, everyone was going to kill her.

"Oh, breakfast?!" Luffy exclaimed.

"What breakfast explodes?" Zoro asked.

"Apparently this one," Addy replied as the smoke finally cleared out of the room. The girl busied herself setting out silverware and dishing the meal out which looked a little more than piles of black ash. It sort of reminded her of what Ignacia tried to serve her once as a joke though even that wasn't as burned.

Everyone sat down at the table and stared at what was in front of them apprehensively, except for Luffy would looked excitedly at the meal. He really would eat anything. Luffy and Usopp were across from them while Addy was sitting next to Zoro with Nami on his other side. Nami, Usopp and Zoro were all glaring at her and she shrugged her shoulders apologetically. It wasn't her fault that she assumed the girl could cook. Sanji was still standing looking at the meal like it was the worst thing he ever saw in his life while the girl was absolutely beaming.

"You made this?" Nami asked poking at it with her fork.

"Yep!" the girl answered.

"It has a quite unique appearance," Usopp mumbled looking at it like it was about to come alive and eat him.

"Yeah…" Addy stated. "What is it exactly?"

"Thanks!" Luffy exclaimed. "I'm digging in!" He started shoveling the food in his mouth rapidly. Addy just took another shot as she stared at what was in front of her. She was pretty sure it would kill her instantly.

"In addition to rescuing me, you're feeding me, too," the girl said. Addy was sort of regretting doing so now. It was then that Addy noticed the destroyed cooking supplies in the sink. She was really regretting this now. Luckily they had extra in case Luffy decided that he needed to cook for whatever reason. "I'll do anything to help you from now on!"

"That'll be helpful," Nami said looking nervous at the prospect of more help. "Thank you."

"Is this really edible?" Zoro asked looking at it closer. Nami slammed her foot into his and he let out a cry giving Nami the chance to dumb the plate into Zoro's mouth.

"Stop grumbling and just eat it!" She brought her hands to the top of his head and the bottom of his jaw and slammed his mouth closed.

"But seriously?" Usopp asked. "Is this really safe to eat?"

"Really? This good," Luffy announced. He was eating it happily and the girl immediately brightened up. Addy didn't have the heart to tell her that Luffy would probably eat toxic mold spores if someone called it food.

"That's right," Sanji said. "It's possible that just the appearance is bad." He took a fork and grabbed some from his plate and put it in his mouth. Usopp did the same and soon all of them were eating except for Addy who elected not to die this way. Almost immediately everyone except Luffy turned an amazing shade of red except for Zoro who Addy was sure really was dying considering that no one should be that shade of blue. There was immediate panic as everyone rushed for water and glugged it down as fast as they could.

"W-Was it that bad?" the girl asked. She grabbed a little bit off a plate and put it into her mouth. She immediately turned red as well. "Woah! That's spicy! What is this?! I put in the wrong seasoning!"

Sanji looked like he was really struggling not to kill the girl and Addy had to give him props for that. He chuckled as he recovered from the overdose of spice. Everyone was back to staring at their plates as if it was evil incarnate. "Well, that's a common mistake," he uttered as his shoulders were shaking. "You'll be fine if you are careful next time. Hey, she took the trouble to prepare it for us. Eat every crumb!" Zoro and Usopp looked up at him as if it was their worst nightmare while Luffy was still happily munching away. Sanji really would make a great dad. "Shut up! Don't waste this girl's kindness. This girl's… Oh, what's your name, by the way?"

"Apis! My name is Apis," Apis stated. Well that solved that mystery.

"Apis dear put her heart into this food! Plus I won't allow anyone to waste food!" He leaned towards Nami and Addy's side of the table. "I'll cook something for you later Nami dear and Addy sweet."

"Thanks," Nami whispered. Addy nodded as well before dumping her plate onto Luffy's. Maybe she would go for a swim and get some fish. That would tide her over.

"I'm sorry," Apis said. "I'm not good at cooking but I wanted to be helpful!"

"Don't worry about it," Nami replied. "We really appreciate the thought."

"Leave the cooking to me," Sanji stated placing a hand on his chest. "There're many other things that you could help out with."

"Okay!" she said smiling.

"Really? This is good," Luffy announced. Everyone sweat dropped. "I wanna eat barbecue next. I haven't had it for a while."

"I am sure Sanji will be able to set that up," Addy said as she started taking everyone plates and silverware to wash them. She might as well since she did leave Apis basically unsupervised in the kitchen. She dumped the leftovers on Luffy plate before heading over to the sink. She piled them up and turned on the tap and let the water rush over them. Sanji placed Luffy plate in as well, that was fast. He then basically shoved her out of the way of the sink, saying that it was beneath her to do dishes and Addy made her way back to her spot at the table.

"Say, why were you drifting on the sea, Apis?" Nami asked.

"I escaped from a Navy ship," she answered.

"From a Navy ship?" Usopp questioned.

"During the stormy night three days ago."

"In that small boat in such a storm," Nami said. "You're reckless."

"So what'd you do in the first place?" Zoro asked.

"Does it matter?" Addy responded before Apis could say anything. "It's the Navy. Their intentions are naturally bad. Anyone who gets on the wrong side of them is a potential friend in my book. Doesn't matter if they are a supervillain or an innocent person."

"Really?" Apis asked looking at her.

Addy shot her a grin. "Beyond a shadow of a doubt. Where are you from? I assume you want to get home."

"What? Oh yes…I'm from Warship Island."

"Warship Island?" Nami asked.

"Do you know it?" Usopp wondered turning towards Nami.

"No I'll check it out." She reached down to grab her map to look for this island.

"Why is it called Warship Island?" Luffy enquired.

"It's because the shape of the island looks exactly like a warship," Apis answered.

"I would have never guessed," Addy said rolling her eyes.

" _And you were doing so well_ ," Merry sighed.

"Oh that's interesting," Luffy stated.

"Ahh!" Nami called out. "This is the one!" They all turned their focus towards the map where Nami was pointing to the island tapping the table with her finger.

"Oh, it's close to the Grand Line," Usopp pointed out.

"We're around here right now, so it's not that far," Nami said pointing out where they were exactly in Ocean. Nami was a brilliant navigator if she could figure out exactly where they were. Most navigators relied on guesswork in the Grand Line and that is if they had maps and basically everyone used the Log Pose. "What do you want to do?" she asked Apis. "Do you want to go back to Warship island? If we keep sailing like this, we are going to enter the Grand Line."

"You were nice enough to save me and I feel bad for burdening you further…" Apis said softly. "But I wanna go back to the island!" Addy got up and made her way to the pole. Grabbing it in both hands she made the course corrections needed to take Apis home.

" _So you do have a heart_ ," Merry said. " _I knew you would do the right thing._ "

"I'm sorry. I'm selfish, aren't I?" Apis asked. "If you hand me to a ship heading west on your way if possible I'll work things out on my own."

"Oh my, that's a real burden!" Nami said holding her head up nose in the air. "There is no way that a pirate ship can get close to another ship so easily."

"Yeah, you're right." Apis looked absolutely dejected.

"But since it is not totally out of our way and we're not really in a hurry. Oh what the heck."

"What?!"

"It doesn't matter either way to me. What should we do, Captain?"

"Yeah," Luffy answered. "That's sounds fine. Besides Addy is already taking us that way."

"Figured we should save some time and get started early," Addy replied.

"The Grand Line isn't that far, either," Usopp pointed out.

"I see. The island looks like a warship, huh?" Luffy asked.

"Sounds like they've decided," Sanji said.

"Really?!" Apis cried out. "Are you really going to stop by Warship Island for me?!"

"Yeah," Luffy answered.

"All right! Thank you, Luffy!" She was jumping up and down in joy. "All right! All right! I'm so happy!" Her joy was infectious and soon everyone was smiling. "Thank you very much! Thank you! Thank you very much, everyone! To show my appreciation, I'll prepare lots of dishes every day!"

"No, that won't be necessary," everyone said simultaneously including Merry and excluding Luffy.

"Why not?" Luffy asked.

" _Addy_!" Merry exclaimed. " _We got Navy Ships in the distance_."

"Shit!" Addy uttered. Everyone immediately looked at her. "I think we have been spotted by the Navy. Usopp want to check out how far away they are?" Usopp quickly dashed out of the ship and Nami left as well.

"Hey!" Usopp shouted. "I see ships approaching from the rear! They're Navy Ships! And it's not just one or two ships, either!" The rest of them left the room as well to see what was going on while Addy was concentrating on guiding Merry. Once the cannon balls started flying it was going to be a bumpy ride.

" _Get us out of here,"_ Merry said. " _It's the same Marines who captured Apis_."

"Then speed is even more important," Addy replied. "Merry you with me?"

" _Every league of the way._ " Addy could feel as Merry sped up gathering more wind in her sails and pushing herself harder.

"Ugh! They're firing at us!" Usopp shouted.

"Don't have to tell me twice," Addy yelled maneuvering Merry. Not for the first time she cursed the fact that she couldn't really see what was going on outside. She moved Merry outside of the cannon ball fire so that all three landed around her sending up large columns of water.

"Attention Pirate Ship!" The Marines yelled out. "Stop the ship immediately. Those were warning shots. The next shots will hit your ship!"

"Warning shots my ass," Addy muttered. "They intended to hit us with those."

" _Make sure that they don't,"_ Merry said. " _The others outside are yelling about a raid_."

Addy whistled. That would be tricky. Trying to get close enough without blowing up would be a challenge. One however that she was up for.

"Addy!" Nami yelled out. "Right Rudder Full! Got it!"

"Of course," Addy said doing exactly what Nami asked. She wasn't exactly sure what was going on.

" _There's going to be Wind_ ," Merry stated. " _We are going to ride it out of here_."

Sure enough, that is what happen as Wind hit the ship and gather up in Merry sails launching her forward rapidly. Addy could feel Merry cruising through Ocean, probably the fastest she has ever been. Addy let out a laugh and used Wind to her advantage. This was fun. However as quickly as Wind appeared it soon ceased and Addy felt a dramatic shift in Ocean. No longer playful and calm but something much more dangerous. Something Addy hadn't felt in a long time.

"Oh Ocean!" Addy exclaimed letting go of the pole and rushing to the deck. "We are so so so so so screwed."

"What's wrong Addy?" Nami asked. She was directly above her on the deck with the figurehead. Everyone who was busy praising Nami skills suddenly ceased and looked at her.

"We are in the bloody Calm Belt," she yelled waving her arms around. Nami looked at her for a second before letting out a shriek. Oh they were so dead.

* * *

Jag: Sadly we did not get much interaction between Zoro and Addy. I don't think we will get a lot from them in this arc but we will see. Those two still got a lot of things they need to sort out.


	62. Coming up Dragons Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _This is also a long chapter relatively speaking, compared to the usual. I am really enjoying this arc. There is just something about it that makes it easy to write. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece_

* * *

"Charm Belt?" Usopp asked.

"What the heck is that?" Luffy questioned.

"Calm Belt!" Nami yelled. "It's an area of sea where nothing moves a muscle!"

"Nami grew her muscles?" Luffy asked.

"Idiot!" Addy slammed her head against the wall of the cabin. Eaten by Sea Kings was not the way she wanted to go. Merry started shaking as well and Addy sat down on the deck resigning herself. Wind probably blew them this way as revenge for blowing up Clockwork Island.

"What was that? An earthquake?" Luffy inquired.

"Earthquake?" Zoro responded. "On the sea?"

"Oh we are so dead!" Addy groaned.

"You guys, enough chit chat!" Nami shouted. "Fold the sails and start paddling now! Put the ship back on its earlier path!"

"Ai Nami dear," Sanji answered red hearts flying off of him.

"What're you panicking about?" Zoro asked. "Paddling? This is a sailboat."

"He's right," Usopp added in. "Why're we taking the trouble to go back to where the Navy is waiting for us?"

"Because we can fight the Navy," Addy replied. "We cannot fight the thousands of Sea Kings that are going to be coming for us any moment now!"

"What?"

"Just do what I say!" Nami yelled. "We're in big trouble! Addy you get back on the helm! If anyone can get us out of this mess you can!"

"No promises," Addy replied.

"Well, the sea is quiet," Luffy pointed out.

"That's the problem," Addy stated.

"Huh?"

Nami growled. "All right, fine! Then I'll explain it for you! Listen up! Addy butt in if you feel like you need to. Since we rushed and ran away, we came further south than we planned!"

"Then did we enter the Grand Line?" Luffy asked. Addy face palmed. It was like trying to explain it to children.

"All right!" Usopp yelled out doing a little twirl.

"If it was that easy than anyone could enter!" Nami shouted.

"Okay look I will explain this the best way I can," Addy said. "Essentially we are in the Calm Belt. You know how the Grand Line goes around the world like a belt, well the Calm Belt is like a shield that protects the Grand Line on either side from other seas. For reasons that are way too complicated to explain there are no winds or currents in the Calm Belt. With no wind or currents we can't go anywhere. We are trapped. It is a dead zone. It's why you can't sail directly into the Grand Line. Understand?"

"Yeah. We are in trouble," Luffy answered back.

Nami sighed. "Addy what would I do without you?"

"So this is what the geezer meant when he said it was dangerous," Sanji muttered.

"No wonder there hasn't been any wind," Zoro pointed out.

"We can't do anything if the ship doesn't move," Usopp added in.

"We can just wait until the wind starts blowing," Luffy stated.

"Like Addy said once you are in this area, wind never blows no matter how long you wait! And that's not all!" Nami yelled out. "There is another reason that people call this area dangerous! In this area…" Merry shook once again and Addy could feel it being lifted into the air. Looks like they decided to show up.

"Ah! Another one!" Luffy called out.

"What's going on?" Usopp asked.

"Something coming this way!" Apis exclaimed.

"It's probably the Sea Kings," Addy responded. Several humps in the water suddenly appeared all around them causing Merry to rock back and forth. "Definitely the Sea Kings."

"Here they are!" Nami screamed.

"Huh?" Luffy asked looking at one of the humps. "What's that?" A hump appeared right in front of them. Large googly eyes were sticking out of it. As the water fell away they could see Sea Kings of all sorts of shapes and sizes surrounding them. Merry herself was on the nose of a very large black and white one. "They're huge!"

Everyone else except Addy was shocked at the size of the beasts surrounding them as well as just how many there were. Nami and Usopp were both crying. Sanji and Zoro were just trying to make sense of what they were seeing. Merry was whimpering.

"The Calm Belt is the nest of the Sea Kings," Nami sputtered as tears ran down her face. "Moreover, the ones here are super huge!" She and Usopp were both clinging onto the mast. "They're another reason why people can't cross the Calm Belt."

"What're we going to do now?" Sanji asked.

"Die I guess," Addy said taking a swig from her flask.

"Let's not do that," Zoro stated. "For the time being, no one move. They'll probably go back into the sea eventually. Then we'll paddle hard using our oars."

"Are you serious?!" Usopp yelled stilling clinging onto the mast.

"Idiot," Nami exclaimed in a harsh whisper covering Usopp mouth. Unfortunately one of the Sea Kings heard him and started to move.

"A frog is coming!" Luffy shouted. Sure enough a giant yellow frog leapt up towards them and the ship started to tip forwards. Addy could hear Merry screaming. Amid all the chaos Apis lost her grip on the ship and started falling into the Sea King mouth. Luckily Luffy stretched out his arm and grabbed her right before the Sea King closed its mouth and it landed back in the sea with a ginormous splash. Luffy was placing her in the crows nest where hopefully she would be safe.

"Y-Your arm is stretching!" Apis exclaimed. "Luffy! Do you have the power of a Devil Fruit?!"

"Apis you are now official one of my favorite people," Addy announced taking another shot. "I am glad we got a chance to meet before we are eaten by Sea Kings."

"Thanks! Luffy! Stretch your arm downwards again!" Luffy did so bringing Apis back down.

"Hey, Luffy!" Usopp exclaimed.

"What're you doing?!" Nami shouted out.

"I don't know," Luffy answered.

"Apis!" Nami called out.

"Watch out!" Usopp yelled. Luffy swung her into one of the Sea King's nostrils and pulled her out again. She was clutching onto a large black hair.

"What did she just do?!" Zoro asked.

"She pulled out a nose hair, Luffy answered. The Sea King started crying and twitching. Merry was rocking back and forth with the movement.

" _I don't like this plan!_ " Merry shouted.

"He's gonna sneeze!" Sanji exclaimed. Luffy pulled Apis back to the ship and she landed safely in Zoro's arms letting go of the hair in the process. Addy dashed back to the helm and grabbed onto it. It was going to be one hell of a ride. She felt as Merry started skipping across the water and soon they were flying through the air. Addy was being thrown around the room bumping into the furniture. She managed to claw her way back to the helm and grab onto it just as they landed back into East Blue. Addy felt the change in the sea and she let out a sigh. They were safe again.

"Addy!" Luffy yelled. "Take us to Warship Island!"

"Aye Captain," Addy said as she started guiding them to Warship Island under Nami's guidance. At the speed they were going it would only take them an hour at most. If even that. There adventure in the Calm Belt had actually caused them to move closer to their destination than they were before. Therefore it didn't take too long to reach the spot where the island was supposedly. Unfortunately the area was surrounded by a dense layer of fog.

"Well we can see fog," Luffy uttered.

"Apis?" Sanji asked. "Is it really around here?"

"Not sure," she answered.

"It should be close by," Nami stated. They were all standing around the figurehead trying to see if they could spot the island with Luffy clinging to the figurehead itself.

"That's our Nami dear," Sanji said.

"You sure do know your stuff," Luffy mentioned.

"Ah… Look!" Apis pointed into the fog. Addy narrowed her eyes and tried to see what she was looking at cursing the fact that her eyes hadn't fully developed yet. As they approached where Apis was pointing the island slowly started to form. Apis was right, the island did indeed looking like a battleship. The fog was starting to clear around the island though Addy still could hardly make it out.

"Oh!" Luffy exclaimed. "It's a sailboat! It's huge!"

"Now listen here…" Sanji said.

"The word huge doesn't begin to describe it," Zoro finished.

"Then a super humongous sailboat?" Luffy asked.

"No!" Apis announced. "That's Warship Island. It's shaped like a Warship so it's called Warship Island."

"Very creative name," Addy muttered. "Could they not think of anything better? Also I am pretty sure you told us this like yesterday."

" _Don't be mean_ ," Merry chided.

"I see!" Luffy said looking at it excitedly. "Interesting!" They started sailing closer to the island, the current bring them right to the dock. Addy wondered briefly how the locals would take to pirates arriving before shrugging it off. They had Apis with them after all. Sure enough as they got closer to shore Addy saw numerous people holding various makeshift weapons ready to defend their village. Addy brought Merry right next to the rocky shore and she felt a rope ladder being let down.

" _Apis is off_ ," Merry said. " _Everything is safe_."

"Great," Addy replied letting go of the helm and making her way across the deck. "This shouldn't take too long. We will be back before you know it."

" _Make sure of it_."

Addy then jumped off landing softly on her feet next to Luffy. Sanji was busy still climbing down but everyone else was on shore. Despite Apis the villagers were looking at them cautiously as if they weren't sure what to make of them. This made Addy nervous and she placed her hand on her whip, ready for anything.

"Say, you guys…." Luffy said. He had a serious look on his face and his hat was slightly tipped forward.

The villagers recoiled, some taking a few steps back tightening their grip on their weapons. Addy was sure this was going to turn into an all-out brawl before one of the villagers finally spoke.

"Wh-What?!" he stuttered raising his weapon up to defend himself.

"Is there a BBQ restaurant on this island?!" Addy relaxed immediately and chuckled at how paranoid she was being. Of course Captain was asking about food. To him it was serious business. The villagers were staring at him stunned, as if wondering what to make of him.

"Wh-What's this guy?" one of them asked trying to make sense of his situation.

"Listen! They're pirates," Apis said holding out her arms as if to shield them from the crowd. Not that it would be very effective but the thought would count. "But they're good pirates." Much to Addy's chagrin.

"Are there really good pirates?" a different villager asked sounding skeptical. Addy did not blame him. Before she met Luffy she would have said no.

"Yes!" Apis responded lowering her arms.

"Weren't you taken away by the Navy in the first place?" the villager next to the other one asked.

"That's right but I escaped," Apis answered as if it was an everyday normal occurrence. "And these guys, Luffy and the others, saved me. Right?"

"Yeah," Luffy added in. The villagers still didn't look like they were buying it though at least they no longer looked like they wanted to kill them.

"What'd you do Apis?" one of the villagers asked. "We don't know why but the Navy was looking for you. You should stay away from your home. They're still around." Addy gripped her whip. If the Navy was still around then she wouldn't let them get anywhere near Apis or her nakama.

"What am I going to do?" Apis asked looking around at them confused, holding the back of her head with one hand.

"We'd like to help, but…" one of the villagers started to say, "they're pirates, right?"

"Ahh what should we do?" Apis wondered.

"Like she said, we're good pirates," Usopp stated. "Well most of us are anyway."

"I can be good when I want," Addy replied. "I just don't choose to be most of the time. It also depends on your definition of good."

"Apis!" an older gruffer voice called out. The crowd parted and this short old man came into view. He was bent over a cane and was wearing the same silly hat that everyone on this island seemed to be fond of. "Come to my house!"

"Who's that?" Nami asked.

"Dunno," Luffy replied looking somewhat perplexed. Apis was certainly happy about seeing him however. She had a wide smile across her face.

She started running up to him as fast as she could, "Grandpa Bokuden!" she exclaimed. Apis ran up to him, wrapping her tiny arms around his waist.

He was laughing as he embraced her as well, "I'm glad your safe," he said. He then turned his focus towards Luffy. "Thank you for saving Apis. How about this? I would like to throw a small welcome party for you."

"Is your place a BBQ restaurant?" Luffy asked. He really wanted BBQ.

"It's not a BBQ restaurant," Apis stated. Luffy seem to deflated once he heard that. "But Grandpa Bokuden's pork buns are the best on the island!"

"Which isn't saying much considering the size of the island…" Addy said right before Nami glared at her. "What? It's true." Nami shook her head and sighed pinching the bridge of her nose. They all gave her trouble didn't they. Addy took a shot from her flask and walked up with the others towards Bokuden's house. Luffy was practically bouncing the entire way there. For some bizarre reason it was separate from all the others houses in the village, up a hill in a rather forested area secluded from everything else. It was a rather nice looking house as well, with wood paneling, a blue tiled roof and a wooden fence going part way around it. There was also a smaller hut behind it, though unlike the house it was made out of stone instead of wood. Addy could see steam drifting from the top of it. That is probably where he made the pork buns.

He led them inside the hut and the smell of pork buns became over powering. Normally Addy thought that food other than fish at least smelled good but this was odd. It wasn't bad per say but it was thick. Addy could see a fire going, in a large rock that was hollowed out and the surface was smoothed out. Steam was coming off of it. Addy wasn't sure this was the safest place to have a large round carpet but she also wasn't an interior decorator.

Bokuden was busy inspecting and placing buns in one of his many baskets on top of this hot surface. The steam would do most of the work. There were layers and layers of them. It might be enough to feed Luffy for an hour. The rest of them might be lucky to get one. He placed the lid back on and turned to face them.

"There the preparations are finished," he said leaning against his cane. "Wait a little while."

"Cool!" Luffy exclaimed a big smile on his face.

Usopp had a similar expression, "Whoa! Smells good!

"If you say so," Addy mumbled.

She felt someone clap her on the shoulder and turned to see Sanji.

"Don't worry Addy sweet," he spoke. "I will make you something divine later."

"You always do," Addy said. He then started gushing and she rolled her eyes fondly. "Now why don't you go check out the pork buns."

"Of course, Addy sweet." He twirled behind Bokuden who was either looking tired or bored, Addy really couldn't tell. Sanji then turned serious and his back straightened. "I see…. This is the real deal! Old man, how long do we have to wait?"

Bokuden apparently just noticed he was there, "Hm? Well… maybe about 4-5 hours."

"What!" Luffy and Usopp exclaimed at the same time, eyes popping out of their heads.

"Ah don't worry yourselves. You can stay in my home until they are ready." He then slowly made his way past them towards the door they came in. The Straw Hats all glanced at each other before they followed him where he was just opening the door. Addy was getting the feeling that this guy couldn't do anything quickly. He then made his way down the really short wood bridge with an overhang between the two buildings. Meticulously he got out the key and opened the door. He then made his way in followed quickly by the Straw Hats.

It was actually a rather nice house with the wood paneling and another large round carpet with a fire place off to the side. A short table was sitting in the middle and Addy could see Apis setting out cups of tea. Each of the Straw Hats settled themselves comfortably down, with Luffy leaning against the window.

"Ah, I'm starving," he said placing his hands behind his head.

Usopp was sitting at the table right across from Bokuden. "Bokuden?" he asked. "Why is the Navy after Apis? Do you have any idea?"

Bokuden turned towards Apis who was also sitting on a box besides Luffy, "Apis! Do you have any idea?"

"Not at all!" she stated.

"You said there was a reason but you didn't want to tell," Nami pointed out. She was also at the table next to Sanji who was sitting beside Usopp. Addy and Zoro were leaning against what appeared to be a tree trunk that grew in the house that had been smoothed off.

"Oh that? I lied."

Usopp made a noise of surprise which turned into shock when Bokuden said he had no idea.

"Really, there's nothing on this island. Nothing but an old legend," Bokuden started.

"Legend?" Zoro asked, Addy shoved him lightly. She didn't really want to sit here as he droned on about some legend. Judging from the look on Apis's face that was what exactly was going to happen.

"The residents of this island are said to be descendants of the Lost Island people who prospered but sank into the sea tens of thousands of years ago. On Lost Island there lived the Sennenryu."

"Wait dragons lived on the island?!" Usopp exclaimed.

"No," Addy pointed out. "Dragons and Sennenryu are two different creatures. I mean they are related but there is a difference."

"What's the difference?" Nami asked.

"Sennernryu are feathery creatures with long serpentine bodies while dragons are basically giant lizards."

"How do you know all this?"

Addy took a long swig from her flask. "Riley had a devil fruit that allowed her to turn into a dragon. So we did all the research that we could on various dragons and so on."

"Really? Awesome!" Luffy exclaimed.

"It was indeed," Addy mumbled. Zoro put an arm around her shoulders. "Anyway Bokuden you can continue."

"Thank you, the bones of those Sennernryu are called Dragonite…." Bokuden stood up as if to prove a dramatic point. "And is said to be an elixir of immortality." He grabbed a lighter from a cabinet in the corner of the room and started to light the lamps that were lining the wall, setting the mood for this mediocre tale.

"I see," Sanji said. "But a legend like that is no reason for the Navy to get involved."

"Yeah," Usopp added in. "Why is the Navy doing this in the first place?"

"That's the thing I don't get," Nami stated.

""I think we can gather from the immortal elixir part what they want," Addy responded. " For some reason people crave immortality. Though what that has to do with Apis, I don't have the faintest idea."

"Doesn't this legend hold some sort of clue or something?" Zoro asked.

Bokuden sat back down and settled himself in, "To begin with the first king…." And Addy lost him immediately, resting her head against Zoro's shoulder and closing his eyes as Bokuden drowned on. A nap would be way more useful than whatever he was spouting.

* * *

hellspam: I am actually going to do all the filler, even the really stupid filler arcs. I actually like filler because its gives us different characters reactions than what we would normally see in canon. The problem with Naruto's filler is that it ran forever without coming to any point. One Piece is way better about it, but it still has its stupid moments, the worst being that filler arc with the bounty hunters. That is going to be a pain.

Jag: I love dragons as well and Apis is actually a decent character particularly when compared to some of the other kid characters in filler arcs. I'm looking at you Rainbow Mist. This one, G-8, Rainbow Mist, and the amnesia arc are probably my favorites. Most are just eh and some are awful.


	63. Coming up Dragons Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _So yeah, dragons. Not much more to say. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Hey everyone!" Luffy yelled startling Addy awake. "This is so cool!" Everyone else was still asleep including thankfully the Bokuden though he was still mumbling his story.

"What's going on here?" Nami asked.

"Well," Addy replied. "While you were off doing Ocean knows what the rest of us stayed here to listen to his long winded story. Well at least Sanji and Usopp did. Zoro and I promptly fell asleep."

Nami folded her arms and stared at Bokuden, "Geez the story isn't over yet?"

"Apparently not," Addy stated getting up and brushing herself off. Zoro mumbled something and shifted slightly up though he stayed asleep. "Where were you guys anyway? And where is Apis?"

Luffy was standing over Usopp about to poke him, "Hey, listen to me…" Luffy said breaking the snot bubble that Usopp formed while sleeping. There was a loud popping sound which startled Usopp awake. That also triggered Zoro to start waking up as well bringing his head up and looking slightly bleary eyed.

"What? Is it morning already?" he asked somewhat groggy.

Sanji sat up from off the floor as well, "I dozed off since the old man's story was so long." He stretched out his arms and back and Addy could hear a cracking sound. Perhaps a masseuse should be there next crew mate. That would be nice.

Suddenly she heard the creaking of the door as it was hastily opened. One of the villagers stood in the doorway panting visibly, sweat dripping down. "Th-There's a problem!" he huffed out. "Bokuden! Where's Apis?!

"What's the matter?" Nami asked.

"Ah, you guys're pirates, right? A Navy Fleet started blocking the harbor!"

"Of course they did," Addy hissed. They really weren't going to quit until they had there immortality elixir. Normally Addy wouldn't really care, let them deal with the stupidity of their own actions. But she held a soft spot for Apis and damn any Marines that come near her.

"It can't be…. Just to capture Apis?" Nami wondered.

"I did tell you Marines are nothing but lowlifes. Hunting a little girl for no good reason," Addy snarled and placed her hand on her whip.

"Why are they after a girl like that?" Usopp asked. Did he not listen to what she just said? Marines equal dirtbags. End of conversation.

"Hey!" Nami yelled getting all of their attention. She was holding out her arms "Everyone, come with me!"

"Certainly, Nami dear," Sanji said enthusiastically jumping up immediately.

"Why?" Luffy asked.

"Just do it!" she yelled at him.

"What do we do with the old man?" Zoro asked.

"Leave him here…." Addy stated. "What else would we do with him?"

Bokuden was snoring pretty loudly, his head bobbing up and down with his breathing. He wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon.

"Looks like he is sound asleep," Nami pointed out. "So, let's let him be." She turned towards the villager. "Hey, when Bokuden wakes up please tell him that we'll protect Apis."

"O-Okay," the villager stuttered unsure of what to make of them. Addy didn't exactly blame him as Nami lead them out the back door of the house.

"Nami I am not sure what your plan is here," Addy said as they stood outside the bun house. "But I got some other things to take care of, namely a Navy fleet, so I will just go down and take care of that…"

"No," Nami hissed grabbing onto her arm. "We need your experience."

Addy looked at her skeptically. "What experience? Because I got a lot of experience killing Marines. I could put that to use."

"Your expertise on Sennernryu."

Now Addy was really concerned. Was she drugged or something? "Nami…. You do know that they aren't real right….?"

…

"Well apparently I was wrong," Addy said staring at the Sennernryu in front of her. She took a shot from her flask to compose herself. He had curled himself into a ball and was staring at all of them through his large golden eyes. His green feathers rustled slightly, though they also appeared to be dull, a lot of them having a grayish color. He also appeared to have a large bump on his head. After going through a tunnel, hiking through a forest, crossing a makeshift Luffy bridge, hiking through the forest some more, and then finally reaching a cave, Addy was about done with all this. The Sennernryu made up for it to some extent, though now it meant that Addy had a bigger problem. Namely making sure that the Marines did not get their hands on the immortality elixir now that it was actually a genuine threat.

Everyone else was staring at it like they couldn't believe their eyes. Usopp jaw was basically on the floor. Sanji was struggling to stay coherent, his eyes turning white with shock and Zoro was clenching his jaw as if trying to keep himself from screaming. Then Apis appeared on top of the Sennernryu head. Well that explained a few things.

"Hi everyone!" she called out.

"This is the Sennernryu Grandpa Bokuden was talking about," Nami said.

"You don't say…" Addy muttered. Honestly she was just grateful it wasn't a dragon. She wasn't sure she could handle that.

"See?! Isn't he cool?!" Luffy exclaimed.

"Don't talk like he's yours!" Nami yelled at him.

"When you get closer to the Grand Line you run into things like this, huh?" Zoro asked. He had calmed down some from his initial reaction, though Addy could still see sweat drops across his face.

"Since there're Sea Kings as well, I guess this is possible," Sanji replied also calmed down. He placed his hands in his pockets and was slouching slightly as if to give off a cool vibe. It wasn't working.

"I-Is he really harmless?" Usopp stuttered still trying to make sense of what he was seeing. Addy had to give him credit. She expected him to have run out of the cave in sheer terror by now. The Sennernryu then brought his face forward so that he was right in front of Usopp before licking him, leaving Usopp covered in salvia.

"Ah!" Apis shouted. "He can be senile sometimes, so if he acts like you're food, get away!" There was a crunching sound as the Sennernryu grabbed onto Usopp's head with his jaw though it seemed like he was unable to bite down fully. Didn't stop Usopp from going into full blown panic mode.

"It's too late!" he cried out tears streaming down his face.

"But it doesn't hurt, right?" Luffy asked him before starting to laugh. Addy thought that sometimes Captain forgot that he was made out of rubber and that people have very different tolerances towards pain. Though if it was hurting him then Luffy would step in. "I guess you call it soft-mouth?"

"Wh-Wh-What're you saying?!" Usopp yelled. He was starting to struggle at this point, flailing his feet about. "He's not a puppy."

"Let him eat you like that!" Zoro stated with an amused smirk on his face.

"Zoro! Usopp shrieked struggling even harder now.

"Don't" Sanji stated. "He'll have food poisioning."

"What'd you say, you damn love cook?!" Usopp shouted. Luffy was still laughing and Addy had to admit that it was somewhat amusing but the Navy was here and Addy didn't want to leave Merry alone with them. Hoping that this worked on Sennernryu just as much as it did on dragons she walked up to where his jaw met with his neck and lightly tapped it with the hilt of her whip. The Sennernryu dropped Usopp like a hot stone and Usopp scurried behind one of the closest boulders peaking his head around it so he could keep an eye on the Sennernryu. Meanwhile the Sennernryu laid his head on the ground and Apis stood next to him looking somewhat sheepish. The Sennernryu huffed and breathed smoke out of his nostrils.

"Alright," Nami said getting all of their attention. She crossed her arms. "What the Navy is after is this Sennernryu." The Straw Hats were scattered all across the cave in various positions though they were all locked on Nami. "Frankly, the reason I brought you here is that we'd like to bring this Sennernryu back to Lost Island."

Addy was slightly unsure about this plan, though not as unsure as Usopp who shouted, "Wh-What're you saying?! The Navy is closing in on us! We're gonna have enough trouble getting away, how the heck could we take such a big creature?"

"He isn't wrong," Addy added in. "Though it can be done. I am more concerned about this Lost Island bit. Namely the fact that it is called Lost Island."

"Ryu…. Wants to go home…." Apis interrupted. "So…"

"Don't tell me Luffy," Usopp stuttered.

Addy looked up at her Captain who was sitting on a rock above her, "Captain's orders?"

"Yep," he nodded grinning. "I promised and said I'll bring him home."

"They it shall be done."

"Don't do that!" Usopp yelled. "We don't know where that island is right?! How are we supposed to get there?!"

"If we go, it'll work out somehow," Luffy answered.

"As if!"

Apis leaned over Ryu and started petting his nose. "I thought Ryu would get his energy back once he goes home…" she mumbled. Usopp looked slightly stunned as if unsure how to take that.

"Animals have a migration instinct," Nami pointed out. "This Sennernryu may know something."

"Yeah," Luffy stated. "Let's find Lost Island."

Addy took a shot out of her flask. "Sure why not. Don't have anything better to do."

"But…" Usopp started to say when Sanji clicked with his lighter interrupting him.

"Well, things will probably work out, don't you think," Zoro stated leaning back against one of the stone pillars.

"Zoro…"

"That's fine but what are we gonna do with him?" Sanji asked point towards Ryu. "Just bringing him down the mountain alone will be a lot of work."

Nami smirked as if she had it all figured out. "First, build a cart! A big enough one for Ryu to ride." Usopp face palmed, at this point he knew there was no getting out of it.

Apis had a big grin on her face. "All right!" she shouted.

"Alright now you boys," Nami said pointing to Luffy, Zoro and Sanji. "Go cut some trees. Usopp you start working on the cart. Addy and I will monitor things."

"Of course Nami dear," Sanji said spinning out of the cave and Addy could soon hear the sound of trees falling. Luffy and Zoro soon joined him with Zoro grumbling about them having to do all the work. The rest of the Straw Hats followed them out and everything was chaos. Addy wouldn't be surprised if the villagers heard them from all the way up here. Luffy was felling trees with his Gatling punches causing the entire forest to rumble as trees came down. Sanji was doing the same, taking down trees in a wide circle with nothing but his feet. Zoro simply sliced them down. Once the three of them cut enough of them down, they stripped them of leaves and piled up the logs.

"Is this enough?" Luffy asked standing on top of his pile. Addy counted at least 11 in his alone.

"Yeah. A-Okay!" Nami stated giving the okay symbol. Apis looked at them amazed while Usopp was wondering how he managed to hook up with these people. Addy was sort of wondering the same thing.

"Since you did all this, I guess I have no choice," Usopp muttered. "I'll do it. All right, I'll do it!" Usopp laid out the plans for the cart and soon enough the boys were getting it set up and made. Tying the logs together. Shaping some of the logs into wheels. Addy had to admit it was coming together nicely, and it was only reaching noon now. The sun was shining bright and there was only a few clouds. The birds were chirping merrily and Usopp really knew what he was doing.

"Phew!" he said wiping the sweat off his brow. "I guess this is it."

"This thing won't break even when Ryu rides it!" Apis said jumping up and down on it. Luffy was stamping his foot making sure that is was secure and sturdy though Addy was pretty sure she didn't want to ride it.

"Yeah!" Luffy said laughing.

"But the harbor is blocked by the Navy, right?" Sanji asked. "What will we do with the ship?"

"Addy can take care of it," Luffy answered. "Isn't it gonna work out?"

"Whatever you say Captain," Addy replied. "Getting around the Navy isn't going to be the problem. The issue is going to be how to get Ryu attached without blowing up."

"Shall we make a raid?" Zoro asked.

"Yeah, good idea," Sanji stated.

"I like that plan," Addy added in.

"That's not gonna work since we have Ryu," Nami pointed out hands on her hips. "I have an idea about how we can carry him out here. By the way, I want the Going Merry to be brought to the rear of the island."

"Seriously that's it?" Addy asked. "I could do that in my sleep."

Usopp stepped forward pointing towards himself. "Okay! It's the precious ship that Kaya gave us. I'll do it."

"He's so cool!" Apis exclaimed looking like she met her hero for the first time. Her hands were clasped together and if her mouth was any wider it would take up all of her face.

"I guess I will take Usopp with me then," Addy stated. "Since he is clearly so invested in this entire endeavor. Zoro, want to come along? Plenty of Marines for the both of us."

"Excellent idea Addy," Usopp stated. "Zoro should totally come with us."

Zoro grinned and walked towards her. "Only because you asked."

"Sure…. You want to fight the Marines almost as much as I do. Don't deny it."

"Perhaps…" he muttered as he stepped right behind her. If Addy leaned back she would be on his chest. "Or maybe I also have something else on my mind."

"Later," Addy whispered. "Once we get all this Sennernryu stuff sorted."

"Then I'll leave it to you guys," Nami stated interrupting Addy and Zoro.

"Okay!" Usopp said. "So how about we wait until nightfall?" Apis looked crestfallen at that declaration, as if she just watched her hero fall from grace.

"No!" Nami yelled. She then pointed towards the rear of the island which was a long way down from where they were standing. There was a heck of a lot of forest in between them and the cape. "Bring the ship to the edge of the cape that looks like Usopp's nose."

Luffy crouched down as if to get a better look before starting to laugh, "You're right! That's Usopp's nose."

"So what're we gonna do?" Usopp asked who was scratching his nose. "Just bringing the ship won't…."

"Don't worry about it," Nami said. "I don't think they'd find this place so easily but in any case, hurry up."

"What?! Doing things on a hit or miss basis like that isn't….

"Sanji-kun, Luffy! Put Ryu on the cart."

"Okay," Luffy announced.

"Okay, Nami dear," Sanji said way too enthusiastically pushing the cart into the cave.

"Well we better get going," Addy said taking off through the woods followed by Zoro and Usopp. She weaved around the trees as she walked through the forest, leaves crunching underneath her bare feet.

"Um Addy not to question you but this isn't the way we came," Usopp said catching up to her.

"No, it isn't," Addy said continuing to make her way down. "The Marines are going to find that place eventually and I would rather not make it any easier for them by leading them straight to it. This way we can avoid the Marines. It might take us slightly longer but we will make it if we follow….Zoro! You're going the wrong way!" Sure enough Zoro was somehow heading up the mountain at an odd angle. She sighed, took a shot from her flask and raced up to grab him. She got ahold on his hand and started dragging him back down the mountain, with Usopp snickering below them. This was going to take a while.

Sure enough it was an hour before they made it back down to the docks. After Zoro getting misplaced almost every other minute and Usopp switching in between bragging and cowardice, Addy wondered how it didn't take them longer. After sneaking through the village, past all the Marines that were stationed they finally caught a glimpse of Merry. One of the dock buildings provided cover while the three of them peaked around Sure enough she was also guarded by several Marines. Addy counted at least four but there was possibly more.

"Ahh," Usopp whined tears streaming down. "This is why I suggested that we wait until night."

"Think we can handle them?" Zoro asked her.

"Is that even a question?" she hissed back. "Of course we can. I'm just worried about Merry being caught in the middle. Plus I can't tell from here if there are any guys on Merry. I don't want to tangle with these idiots only for Merry to sail off."

Zoro hummed and backed around the building. Taking out one of his swords he sliced the wooden bamboo drainage pipe into two pieces and stuffed on in Usopp's mouth. He placed one in his as well and that is when it clicked for Addy. They were going to sneak aboard. She gave Zoro a soft smile, the man was smarter than she sometimes gave him credit for.

As quietly as they could they jumped in the water and swam towards Merry, with Addy leading the way. It felt great to be back in the water and she couldn't help but show off a little compared to the others. This was her element, where she belonged.

Once they reached Merry Addy surfaced so that she was swimming right beside her.

" _Addy!"_ Merry stated. " _What is going on?_ "

"I'll explain everything," Addy said just as Zoro and Usopp joined rose up to the surface. "You two, climb the anchor and prepare Merry to set sail. I will meet you on board." She dove back down and rushed to the surface launching herself several feet in the air before landing softly back on Merry.

" _You really do have a flair for the dramatic,"_ Merry pointed out. " _But what is going on?_ "

"Long story short," Addy said making her way to the helm. She stood in front of it not wanting to take it in hand yet. "We are taking a Sennernryu back home to an island that isn't on any map."

" _Oh is that all? The Sennernryu is the feathery dragon thing right?_ "

"Yep, the Navy is after it so that they can use its bones to make a immortality elixir. That's why they are after Apis as well. She befriended one."

She heard Merry gasp and start shaking in rage. If Merry was any stronger she would literally be rocking back and forth.

" _Why I….. What are Zoro and Usopp doing_?"

"Climbing the anchor," Addy said.

" _I know that but why are they knocking a piece of wood against my hull. Is this a plan to alert the Navy?"_

"Plan?" Addy exited the lounge and sure enough she heard the sound Merry was describing. That wasn't a good sign. Sure enough it was followed by the sounds of gunshots. Looks like they weren't going to be able to make a clean get away after all. She saw Zoro slicing a rope that pulled the sails down, which meant it was Usopp causing the chaos.

She rushed back into the lounge and grabbed the helm merging with Merry. Merry started moving and Addy guided her along the coast. Addy felt as the rope ladder that kept Merry on shore broke and they were heading around to the meeting point. Only problem was a Marine ship that stood in the way.

"Hey Merry?" Addy asked. "Ever played chicken?"

" _No and I don't think I want to_."

"Well you are about to."

At that moment both Zoro and Usopp came into the room. Usopp still had the pipe stuck in his mouth and was muttering something or other. Zoro just looked at her and she gave him a thumbs up. He nodded and smiled trusting her judgement. Usopp however was still freaking out.

Right before Merry hit the Navy ship, Addy gently pushed the pole towards the left so that Merry turned, barely skirting the warship. There was barely any distance between them. One could walk over to the other ship.

As they sailed past it she heard Merry whistle. " _Nice job._ _You didn't leave a scratch on either of us._ "

"It's what I am here for," Addy said as she maneuvered around the other Navy ships guided by Merry. Zoro and Usopp both looked at her impressed, though Usopp appeared to be more flabbergasted than anything. She could hear the ringing of the Navy alarms though Merry had picked up too much speed for them to be able to do anything. At least that was what Addy thought before the Navy ships started catching up.

"Zoro, Usopp," Addy called out. "Can you keep the other ships off our back."

"Sure," Zoro said dragging Usopp back on dock despite his complaints that there were Marines out there. Addy was getting more and more unsure about this plan. They were only going to have one shot at this. They better make it count.

" _Addy they are catching up_ ," Merry said.

"I don't suppose you can go any faster?"

" _I can try_."

Sure enough Merry picked up speed and Addy was able to maneuver around the big ship. Keeping an eye out the window for the cape she felt as Usopp and Zoro guided the sails to help with their escape. Addy felt them gliding through the water, moving through it without any resistance. But it still wasn't enough. Another big ship was right on their tail.

Luckily they were right at the cape. Addy hoped whatever Nami had planned she did it soon. There was no way they were going to be able to stay here for long.

" _What the hell is that?!"_ Merry yelled. Addy heard a dying screech of a ship being in severe pain. They probably broke one of the masts.

"It's probably the cart with the Sennernryu on it. They must have rode it down."

" _That was your guys plan? You couldn't think of anything better?"_

"Blame Nami not me."

Addy sensed as the cart landed in the water, skipping several times before finally settling down on the surface. She turned Merry towards them and in less than a minute, Usopp and the others were tying the cart to the back of Merry. Addy felt a shift in the weight of the ship. They definitely were going to be moving slower.

"Addy!" she heard Luffy call out. "Set sail for Lost Island!"

Addy sighed and took a shot out of her flask before calling back. "As you wish Captian!" As the sails unfurled she set off in the direction her gut was telling her to go. Hopefully it was the right way. Otherwise they might be out here for a long time.

* * *

Jag: The reason for the more than one type of dragon is essentially to remove that plot hole where in Punk Hazard they act as if they have never seen a dragon. It's still technically true, they haven't. Child characters do indeed have a point, even I used one in the first arc of this fic. Wow that feels like forever ago.


	64. Coming up Dragons Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _I have just had a very busy day so I am going to leave you with this chapter. As always review._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

They had been sailing for a few hours now and Addy still wasn't sure that they were going the right way. She was standing on deck with Nami, Usopp and Zoro overlooking Ryu and watching the flying fish as the leapt in and out of the water. Addy could hear them splashing, it was somewhat soothing. She was half tempted to go down and grab some but she wasn't sure when she would need to change course. A gentle breeze was blowing through her hair, and Addy would think this would be a lovely peaceful day if it wasn't for the Sennernryu and the headaches that it brought. Luffy was on the floating raft trying to get it to tell them where to go. Somehow he could speak to him. Her captain was just a pile of mysteries.

"Lost island huh?" Nami stated. She seemed tired but then she was up all night unlike most of them who slept through Bokuden story. "The map doesn't have any islands in the waters around Warship Island that fit the bill."

"Hey!" Usopp called out. "Ryu! Which way should we go?!"

"I think he went to sleep again!" Luffy called back.

The four of them stared at Luffy and the Ryu frustrated. That had been the 10th time that had occurred in this hour alone. They would have better luck trying to get him to fly at this point.

"Sorry for the wait, everyone!" Apis yelled. She was running up the stairs towards them. They all turned their heads to look at her. "The food's ready." Addy really should have gotten some of the fish.

"Did she cook again?" Zoro asked with a sweat drop.

" _Actually it was Sanji, she just helped_ ," Merry stated. " _I would have said something if she attempted to cook again._ " That made Addy relax.

"No one was waiting for her food," Usopp muttered.

"Relax, Sanji made it, she just helped," Addy informed them. They all breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Oh Sanji," Usopp breathed out just as Sanji was walking up carrying a coil of rope and a basket. "Whew, what a relief! So you made today's meal?"

Apis gave him a deadpanned looked and walked over his foot causing him to groan out in pain.

"Ryu!" she shouted holding up the black pot she was holding so that Ryu could see. "Eat lots, okay?"

"Oh! Food!" Luffy yelled excitedly stretching out to grab the hot pot. Addy suspected that this wasn't going to go well. Sure enough it didn't for as soon as Luffy grabbed onto the pot he screamed and let it go claiming it was too hot. Sanji was immediately freaking out at the wasted food as the pot landed directly on the bump on Ryu's head. It turned into an interesting shade of bright red. Luffy was still screaming about the burns on his hands, which had also turned red as Apis climbed down to make sure that Ryu was okay, sliding down the rope connecting the raft to Merry.

"Can we do anything normally?" Addy asked.

" _Nope,"_ Merry responded. " _Besides where would the fun in that be_?"

"Sheesh," Sanji uttered. "I made all that food and it goes to waste!" He was clenching his fist, he really wasn't happy.

"Can't you make some more, then?" Usopp asked.

"The point is we shouldn't waste food!"

"Sanji right," Addy said. He immediately went goo goo eyes and started praising her. Zoro rolled his eyes and grumbled something about eating out that Addy couldn't fully catch. "Everything on Merry is a precious resource and who knows when is the next time we will be able to stock up."

"So that's where Lost Island is?!" Luffy shouted. Him and Apis were behind Ryu so that Addy could see them.

"Ryu said he just remembered!" Apis shouted back.

"Oh thank Ocean," Addy mumbled. "Maybe we can actually get somewhere."

"We know where!" Luffy called out towards them coming back into view by Ryu's head. "Lost Island is east of Warship Island!"

"Ryu said so," Apis added in.

"Fantastic," Addy stated before heading towards the helm along with Nami. She wasn't that far off then. They were heading southeast so she just had to change their course north until they were back in parallel with Warship Island, Nami would tell her when and then head straight East. No worries.

As she grabbed the pole and felt herself become part of Merry she felt as the rudder turned and Merry cut across Ocean's surface. Yet she still had a bad feeling, like they were being followed. Yet there were no other ships on the horizon, at least none that either her or Merry could see. Perhaps she was just being paranoid but Addy could not shake the feeling.

The feeling eased somewhat as the rest of her crew filed in for food, the same rice and shrimp dish that Sanji made for Ryu. If someone was following them then they would be able to take care of it. Apis was still outside talking to Ryu so they might also be able to spot something. Since they were in the middle of changing course she couldn't join the others at the table, having to keep at least one hand on the pole.

Sanji however kindly offered to hand feed her shrimp. Usopp called him a love cook and Sanji kicked him in the head causing him to knock his glass into Zoro who ended up elbowing Luffy who was trying to steal from his plate sending food flying through the air pisssing off Sanji who directed a flurry of kicks towards all of them. Addy just took the bowl of shrimp from Sanji, leaned back against the pole and started eating watching the entertaining chaos. Eventually it all came to an end when Nami yelled at them to shut up and bonked each of them on the head. They all mumbled apologies and sat back down to eat though it was only a moment later that chaos broke out again.

" _I love all you guys_ ," Merry said laughing. Addy chuckled as well. She wouldn't replace her crew for anything.

Eventually all the food was eaten and the rest of the Straw Hats left except for her, Zoro and Sanji who were doing dishes. After that disaster with Luffy doing the dishes he was no longer allowed to help and since Nami and her were woman they weren't allowed either. Which left Usopp and Zoro and Usopp did them this morning. Which meant that it was Zoro's turn.

"Here, Zoro," Sanji said handing him a clean plate. Perhaps they should install a dishwasher at some point.

"Yeah," Zoro replied wiping down the dish and stacking it with all the other clean ones. The sounds of clinking dishes, of wiping and water made Addy feel at home. It dawned on her just how much her life has changed since she met Luffy and the Straw Hats. It has already felt like it has been forever. She opened up her locket, took a shot from her flask, and looked at the picture of her and Riley. If only she was here, Riley would have fit right in with everyone.

"Here you go, Zoro." Sanji handed him another dish. How many did they go through at a meal?

"Yeah." Zoro placed it on top of the others.

"Here, Zoro."

"Yeah."

"Zoro."

"Yeah."

"Here, Zoro."

"Can't you hand them to 'em to me without talking?"

"Nope, here Zoro."

Zoro grumbled but relented. They had the same conversation every time he and Sanji did dishes together. At this point Zoro might have just given up. Pretty soon Sanji was done washing and left Zoro to finishing drying Zoro and putting them away. Sanji was already busy preparing for dinner, picking out some wine that would probably go great with whatever dish he was making.

" _She really cares about Ryu,"_ Merry said. " _Those two are pretty close_. _They are sort of like you and me."_

"If you say so Merry," Addy whispered.

" _I'm serious you know_. _I love all of you but you… you are special._ "

"That's only because I am the only one who can hear you, besides I know you have a special place for Usopp."

" _Yeah because he is Usopp and my previous owner's master was in love with him. Did you know that she wrote several love letters wanting to confess her feelings but she never got the courage to do so?"_

"How do you know that?"

" _Merry used to tell me all sorts of things. I think he knew I was alive, somehow."_

 _"_ Some people have that gift. Most of them are shipwrights however."

" _You don't say. Addy…. I think the Navy followed us here."_

"Zoro!" Addy stated catching his attention immediately. "Check that window to make sure the Navy isn't following us."

Zoro did so immediately putting down the dish and looking out the window. Addy could see his shoulders tense up and his hand graze his swords. That wasn't a good sign.

"Looks like they did follow us, huh," he spoke.

" _That's not our only problem_. _There is this black shadow looking thing in front of us,_ " Merry said. " _It's almost like smoke and its shaped like a ship_."

Addy cursed, if it isn't one thing it's another. Why one of them would stick a Wind portal here is beyond her. But then it clicked in her head and she grabbed one of the wine bottles Sanji was carrying and drained it. The Sennernryu would fall under their domain, just like Clockwork Island did. Which meant that Apis people probably fell under them as well, though to a lesser extent than Clockwork Island. Fantastic, just more ways to get them pissed off at her.

" _It's a mirror! Should we be going in this?! Is it safe?!"_

"Relax Merry," Addy said gripping the pole. Things were about to get messy. "We are going in the right direction. Just be prepared for some…" She heard Nami and Usopp screaming. They were probably already starting to enter the portal. Knowing Luffy he probably jumped right in.

"Can someone tell the others that we are okay?" Addy stated.

Zoro and Sanji both left but stopped as soon as the exited the door.

"Huh?" Zoro said confused. "It's just fog."

" _Fog as far as the eye can see_ ," Merry added in. " _Also the sky is like black with clouds_."

"No surprise there," Addy replied loosening her grip on the pole somewhat. Thankfully they were still in East Blue, just in a completely different part of East Blue, isolated from the rest of the sea. Thank Ocean for that. She wasn't sure she could handle dimension hoping at this point. "They love their fog"

" _I thought fog was your guy's thing?"_

"It's both, same with clouds. Out of the four of us, Wind and Ocean are the most closely allied."

" _Blaze and Earth being the other pair? That seems rather odd._ "

"It's a long story."

"Hmm," Sanji interrupted. "I thought Nami was in big trouble again or something."

"Just go tell everyone that is all fine," Addy called out to Zoro and Sanji. "This is what should be happening." She heard a loud clap of thunder. They should get in and out of here quickly. Addy felt the rain as it started to fall, hearing it drumming as it landed on the deck. Was this a joint project or did one of her people really owe them a favor? Either way she might have a chance. The waves started picking up as well, knocking into Merry. Addy managed to keep her steady.

Letting go of the pole despite Merry yelling at her to keep on piloting she walked out of the lounge and into the rain. Zoro, Sanji and Apis were on a pile on the deck. All three of them looked at her confused. Nami was now yelling at to get back on the helm. Addy ignored her and walked until she was right by the mast.

"Oi," she called out in her native tongue which mixed perfectly with the sounds of the rain and the crashing waves. "I Adamaris of Delphi ask for permission to come through unheeded. We are traveling with one of the Sennernryu in an effort to return him to his home. Upon the name of my great father Ocean may I travel through the realm in peace?" Immediately Ocean calmed down and the rain slackened so that it was only pitter pattering on deck. Addy guessed the answer was yes as everyone was staring at her slightly shocked as she returned back to the helm. Not a moment later Nami burst in looking at her like she was a magical voodoo lady followed shortly by everyone else.

"Okay that's it," Nami said jamming a finger at Addy chest. "You are going to tell me exactly how you did that, where we are, and most importantly what you are."

"Umm…. Long story?" Addy said shrugging her shoulders. Somehow Addy suspected she wasn't going to get away with it.

" _Hey Addy there is a light out in the distance and I think an island below it, should we be making our way towards it?"_

"Hey there is a light out in the distance with an island, perhaps we should follow it," Addy said pointing out the doorway.

Nami rolled her eyes, "If you think that I am going to believe that…"

"Actually Nami dear, Addy sweet is right," Sanji said. "I saw it once the waves calmed down."

"What?!" she left the room and Addy breathed a sigh of relief. Once again she was able to dodge answering the question. The longer she could keep that up the better. The others left as well though Usopp glanced at her curiously. He and Nami were probably going to come up with a plan to get her to talk. Not that it will work but it would be entertaining to see them try.

With Ocean now calm it was a cinch to make it to the island. It was like there was a complete break, the black skies turning blue, the sea now eerily calm though there was a gentle breeze pushing them forward. Addy only guess that the breeze was around because she was here. Everyone else was by the figurehead looking at the approaching island. From the way Merry described the island it didn't seem like there was anything particularly special about it, though she did describe it as a castle sunk into an island. But then again who knows what they were going to run into.

" _Careful of the debris,"_ Merry said. " _There seems to be a lot of it around._ "

"Understood," Addy said making her way through the water.

" _We are here_ ," Merry said and Addy let go of the pole just as she felt the anchor drop. " _Make it back safe_."

"I plan on it." Addy then jumped off the ship followed closely behind by Sanji and the others. Looking around it did appear to be a bit like an overgrown castle. Statues of Sennernryu were everyone, though many of them were broken or half underwater. Whatever happened to this place wasn't good though Addy had a sneaking suspicion about what caused it. It would also explain why this place was so jointly connected between Wind and Ocean. Sennernryu can be a powerful enemy. But if that was the case than it was important that they leave here quickly. It wasn't going to be safe for any of them if this place figured out who she really was. Perhaps she should have listened to Bokuden story. Sennernryu did live a long time after all and Ryu was clearly old. Maybe he might know. She took a swig out of her flask. It was best not to think about it. Her and history did not go along very well.

"But does anyone live here anymore," Sanji asked. They were standing on a ruined stone pathway that snaked its way further towards the interior of the island. "The whole place has been swallowed up by Mother Nature."

"Say where do you suppose the nest is?" Nami asked looking around.

"Hey!" Apis called out. She was stilling on the raft that Zoro and Luffy managed to pull out of the water. "Ryu! I'm talking to you, Ryu!" She was yelling at his face. Addy mind immediately jumped to the worst but she did sense some life still in him. It wouldn't last much longer but he still had a spark. "Sheesh. We're at the nest island now! Come on, wake up!"

"What did he say?" Luffy asked appearing perfectly calm about everything going on.

"He says he's not sure," Apis answered Luffy. "He says that this might not be Lost Island."

"What?" Zoro asked surprised.

"You can't be serious," Sanji stated looking equally shocked.

"We went all the way through that stormy sea just to get here!" Usopp said clearly frustrated with their circumstances. Addy didn't blame them. She was getting antsy as well. Apis let out a sigh of disappointment.

"Apis!" Luffy shouted. "Look at the top there!" Luffy was pointing towards the top of the hill where a stone building rested. From what Addy could tell it looked rather intact. "We could look at the whole island from up there!"

"Yeah!" Nami said for once agreeing with Luffy. "Trying to figure things out here won't get us anywhere! Let's go have a look."

Apis made a sound of agreement.

"Alright!" Luffy announced. "Let's go!"

They started walking up the hill through the forest. The sound of the rolling cart drowned everything else out and that made Addy nervous. She kept one hand on her whip and kept looking in all directions, making sure that nothing was about to jump out at them. Addy was walking in the back behind the cart. Usopp and Sanji were pushing the cart while Zoro and Luffy pulled. If the guys were saying anything, Addy couldn't hear it. Apis and Nami were in front of the cart and Addy certainly could not hear them.

The scenery switched from the forest to old stone ruins which did nothing to help Addy's nerves. Despite finishing her flask she was still incredibly jumpy. Suddenly everyone stopped in front of her and Addy almost ran into the back of Sanji and Usopp. Did something happen?

"It's a city," Nami said and Addy breathed a sigh of relief. She was probably getting worked up over nothing as the cart was soon moving forward, past the city ruins. Addy could see why they paused. The white stone even in its ruinous state shined like stars. This was a Wind legacy community, no doubt about it.

She saw Apis stop by some long grass and pick something up. Addy walked towards her to see what she was looking at her hand becoming a death grip on her whip. It was a small Sennernryu top.

"The Sennernryu mark," Apis said turning the top in her hands. "Did the Sennernryu play with children here on the island?"

"I wouldn't doubt it," Addy replied. "They are known for being rather friendly creatures, unless you make them angry." Three green birds with black tipped feathers started flying above them in a circle chirping at them.

"Hey! Are you guys friends with the Sennernryu too?" Apis asked. Right she could talk to animals. Addy forgot about that. They twittered back something and Apis made an excited noise as one landed on her shoulder. "They just told me that there is a building on the summit with a Sennernryu mark."

"Good news then," Addy said. "Why don't you tell Nami," so we can get the hell out of here. Apis hummed in agreement and ran off to tell Nami. Addy followed her cautiously. If something did trigger then maybe it wouldn't tie it to them. It wasn't their fault that Addy was a member of their crew. They had no idea anyway, they were completely innocent in the matter and Addy intended to keep it that way. The cart was way far ahead now and Addy could see Nami running to catch up with the cart. As she walked past some of the old buildings she felt and saw a gust of Wind down an alleyway. She stopped dead in her tracks and turned. Might as well deal with this now.

"I know you are there," Addy said. "If you seek to punish me so be it but leave them out of this."

As if out of nowhere a figure appeared right in the middle of the path. Addy took a step back and it took all of her willpower to remove her hand from her whip. If she attacked she was dead, no question. For before her stood Medli of Lyra daughter of Aradia of Lyra who was the oldest one of them. Addy had met Medli only once before and she was still just as intimidating.

She was tall, taller than Addy was, and lanky with skin as black as night and hair so dark it was almost purple in color. It made her amethyst eyes and white teeth glow brightly. She was wearing a tanktop the color of the sun and a wraparound skirt that changed colors every time she shifted. Though what made her imposing was her large feather wings that started off grey but were tipped black at the ends. Her wings were several feet in length and blocked the entire alleyway. Addy gulped. Iskannan should be around as well and Addy didn't really want to deal with both of them.

"Now why would I want to do that Adamaris?" Medli asked taking a step towards her. It took everything Addy had to not step back. "Unless you plan on causing trouble."

"Look I don't know what happened here…" Addy stuttered.

"Don't you," Medli said brushing her hand against Addy's cheek. Her long fingernails cut into Addy's skin breaking it slightly. She could feel the blood trickle down and seep into the soil below. Now she was screwed. One word from Medli and the whole island would probably try to kill her. "I think you know."

"I'm not her," Addy mumbled.

"Oh trust me if you were, you would already be dead. Now is what you say true? Are you really trying to bring a Sennernryu back home?"

"Yes, just see for yourself. He is with the rest of my crew. We are trying to find the nest."

"Well your looking in the wrong place then." Medli snapped her fingers. "This has never been the nest. It is a resting place for the Sennernryu and the home of one of our legacy communities but it hasn't even been that for the past 800 years."

"So where is the nest?"

"That is something you have to figure out for yourself."

Addy was somewhat stupefied. "What? Why?"

"Because if you do have ill intentions I am not going to lead you to it. Besides you have someone following you with clearly ill will."

"Right the Navy. We will take care of it."

"See that you do." Medli started hovering ready to take off back into the sky. "Take care of that Sennernryu. I am rather fond of them. Also I am sorry for your lose. What you have been through is something none of us should have to bear."

"Your words are kind, May your joys be as deep as Ocean, your problems as light as His foam."

"May Wind always be at your back."

As quickly as she arrived she flew off back into the sky. Addy let out a sigh of relief and collapsed on the ground. She was probably just in the area and checking on things but still it was nerve wracking. One wrong move could have meant the end. She felt herself shaking, as if she was falling apart at the seams. Addy buried her head in her hands to stifle a cry. That was so close, so very very close. Addy didn't care what happened to her but Medli would not have just left her alone. She would have gone after her nakama as well, perhaps before she dealt with Addy. If anything happened to them…

"Addy?" a voice called out. She looked up and saw Usopp standing over her clearly concerned. "The others are waiting."

"Yeah.. I'm okay." Addy said getting up with his help. "I just had a close call is all."

"You sure?"

"Yeah everything is okay now." Addy clapped him on the shoulder. "Though could you do me a favor?"

"Sure?"

"You don't happen to have a story you can tell off the top of your head."

Usopp gave her a wide grin, "Of course I do. The great Captain Usopp has many wondrous tales, like the time I fought off three giant golden tigers with only a stick of bamboo and my wits…" As Usopp continued his tale and the two of them walked back towards the others, Addy felt herself becoming more relaxed. She needed this.

Before long they reunited with the rest of the crew, who were standing in front of a building, all of them smiling once her and Usopp reached them, though Luffy and Zoro looked slightly concerned. Particularly Zoro who walked up towards her and pressed his thumb against the cut on her cheek.

"What happened?" he asked her softly. Usopp had started to tell his story to Luffy who was completely enthralled, along with Apis surprisingly.

"Luckily nothing," Addy answered. "It could have been way worse but it is taken care of now."

Zoro hummed and didn't question any further something that Addy was extremely grateful for. She would find a way to thank him later. There were still some tricks she had in bag that she hadn't tried yet.

Once she got to the front of the group she saw what everyone was looking at. A very old stone door with a blue Sennernryu painted on it.

"This painting is of the Sennernryu right?" Nami asked.

"Looks like it," Addy replied.

"This building is the nest?" Sanji asked.

"Actually the nest isn't on this island," Addy stated. Everyone turned to look at her surprised. "I figured that out when we were separated. This building however may contain clues to let us figure out where the nest actually is."

"Ah!" Sanji exclaimed. "Addy sweet is so smart."

"Hold on!" Zoro said. "Where's the entrance? How do we get inside?"

"This is the door!" Luffy stated pointing at the door.

"You're so stupid!" Nami growled at Luffy. "There's no handle or keyhole anywhere! How're you supposed to open it?!"

"Well I guess we could break it down," Addy said. "If we had to."

"We might destroy valuable clues if we did," Nami added in.

"Like I said. If we had to."

Apis then walked towards the door, holding something in her hand. Her pendant? The thing that caused this mess to begin with?

"Apis!" Nami exclaimed. "That pendant… You don't mean…"

"It's actually a key that opens the door?"

Apis glanced between all of them before nodding. She reached up to put the key in the key hole but she was just slightly too short. She turned back towards them disappointment clearly in her eyes, which were watering.

"I can't reach," she uttered.

Luffy started laughing and bent down placing his hands on his knees, "You're so little, Apis!"

"So what?!"

"Alright! Leave it to me!" He grabbed the pendant from her hand and prepared to place it in the key hole. Just as he was about to, Addy felt as the ground started to crumble belong her. Everything was shaking. All she could hear was screaming and the tiles below her fall apart. She couldn't even maintain her balance and soon she was falling into a pit, along with everyone else. Dust clouded her eyes and she couldn't figure out which way was up. Unfortunately she landed on something hard and she felt her arm snap. Addy howled out in pain and grabbed onto her arm.

This was not her day. Her ears were ringing. All she tasted was dirt. Her arm felt like it was on fire. She wasn't sure what was going on but she felt something warm engulf her. She clung onto it with her good arm and tried to get her bearings straight. Addy took a deep breath and the smell of steel hit her. She took another deep breath and opened her eyes to see Zoro looking over her while Nami was checking out her arm. Luffy was hovering close by as well, along with all the others. She was really worrying them today

"I think you dislocated it," Nami said.

"Fantastic," Addy muttered. "Zoro can you help me put it back in place?"

"Sure." He grabs onto her shoulder and helps put it back in place. After a few grunts, groans, and screams on Addy part it is placed back in its socket. She rubbed it. The shoulder still felt sore and she should probably bandage it up but that could wait until later. Right now she would work on just keeping it still.

"Say, what was that about it being a key just a minute ago?" Sanji asked. Apis made a weird expression as if trying to figure out what to say. Luffy handed her the claw back. Now that they were inside, he wouldn't need it. "Well in any case, we're inside now."

Apis smiled and gave a thumbs up, "It worked out!"

"Yeah, totally," Addy said. "Nothing bad happened at all." Apis looked somewhat sheepish but Addy smiled. They had no idea that was going to happen.

"But what is this place?" Zoro asked looking around before he settled on looking up.

"Yeah… What is it?" Luffy stated looking up as well. Addy followed suit and gasped. On the ceiling was a beautiful mural, faded with age, but still remarkable.

'Well,' she thought to herself. 'Looks like we found our clue.'


	65. Coming up Dragons Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _This arc when in a direction I did not expect it to go though at this point Addy has completly taken over the story. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Wow!" Luffy exclaimed. "What a huge picture! What's it of?"

Addy wasn't fully sure herself. A lot of it had faded over time. It had to do with the Sennernryu however, as there was many images of them. The mural seemed to be centered around a circle with everything traveling around it. Boats, Sennernryu, people, it was a lot to take in. There was also a phrase or two scattered around in her tongue that she was able to make out, though she wasn't sure it was useful. It was broken in too many places.

"It looks like some sort of map," Usopp pointed out.

"But it's too worn out to make any sense of," Sanji stated. "But what is this place anyways?!"

"It's a temple dedicated to Wind," Addy said keeping her eyes on the mural to see if she could discern anything. "It would have been the center of town and the source of all there ceremonies."

"You seem to know a lot about this place," Zoro said.

Addy shrugged her shoulders. "It hasn't been the first time I have been in a place like this. Somewhere here it should point out where the nest is."

"Hey, guys!" Luffy called out. "Look at this! The ceiling picture's fallen down!" They all turned toward what Luffy was looking at. A picture of a Sennernryu that had fallen from the ceiling. It was only the upper half of its body and it was taller than Luffy and wider than all of them standing together. The bottom half probably broke and was scattered around in pieces.

"Yikes!" Usopp exclaimed.

"It's huge," Apis stated.

"Whoa, talk about dangerous!" Usopp said walking over to where Luffy was. "This whole building's ready to fall apart! If we dilly-dally around here, we'll be in danger, too! Let's get the heck out of this place!"

"But this place might hold clues to the nest!" Apis retorted.

"I don't see anything helpful!"

"Hold on a second," Nami said capturing everyone's attention.

"What is it Nami dear?" Sanji asked.

"This might not be Lost Island. Look closely at the painting above us." She pointed upwards. "It's a map that marks the location of Lost Island."

"Yeah I know," Addy said. "Almost all of these buildings contain a map of the most significant places in the area. Problem is that this one is basically unreadable."

"Not as much as you think. That island with a dome-shaped building on it…" Addy looked up to see what she was pointing at. Sure enough there was a pictograph of the building they were currently in. It also included people doing various tasks such as praying and carrying jugs of water. "That's this island. That dome is this building."

"It does look just like it," Sanji added in.

"And the people around the island are the people who once lived here. I'd wager they're probably Apis' ancestors."

"Our ancestors?" Apis murmured.

"Say do you remember what old man Bokuden told us?" Nami asked.

"Nope! I was asleep!" Luffy said. Addy nodded her head as well. She didn't even try to pay attention.

"Come on, now!" Nami stated frustrated. "He said the people of Warship Island had traveled there from another island."

Luffy cocked his head to the side "He did?"

"Come to think of it," Usopp remarked. "He did say something like that. Then does that mean the dynasty he kept blabbing on about was on this island?"

"Probably," Nami said crossing her arms. "So, what had me wondering were all the Sennernryu statues and paintings on the way here. I think they might have been used by the people living on this island to worship the Sennernryu as a god. I bet the Sennernryu used to fly over this island a long time ago."

"I think this island was a resting place for the Sennernryu on their way to the nest," Addy stated. "It would make the most sense. As for the actual worship part I doubt it. Most likely they communed with them on a spiritual level but I think worship is a bit much."

Nami arched an eyebrow, "You do seem to know a lot about this place."

"Let's just say I got some insider tips. Plus that is what it pretty much says on the walls."

"You can read the writing! And you didn't say anything!"

"Well there isn't much that is readable. And what is readable isn't helpful. It's all about how they lived with the Sennernryu. Something about a 500-year cycle, something more about something rising, and them moving. That's pretty much it."

"But then where is the real nest?" Apis asked.

"Wouldn't it be that island with the Sennernryu drawn on it?" Zoro pointed out. Addy looked up again to see what he was talking about.

"That's right," Nami said. "There's an island ahead of where this island's people are praying. That's the real Lost Island. The nest must be there too. But…" That part of the map was broken. Smashed straight through the middle. Although it did look like….. Oh Ocean no.

"Wait a minute!" Apis stated. "That island is shaped like…!"

"Yeah. Assuming the map is correct, the nest is on Warship Island."

"But I thought there was no places on Warship Island that fit the bill?!" Usopp asked. Sunlight was streaming in through the windows. The sun was getting higher in the sky. Addy kept looking at the writing on the walls, to see if anything popped out at her, but the only thing mildly interesting was this 500 year cycle and something about rising. The two of them seemed to be connected. It suddenly clicked in Addy's brain and she stifled a laugh. Of course that would be it.

"But that's what the map says!" Nami pointed out. "Or are you saying that the people long ago just drew random nonsense?!"

"That's right guys," Sanji added in. "Nami dear never say anything that's wrong! This means it's somewhere on that island! We'll figure it out if we go check it out!"

"But.. It could also have sunk to the bottom of the ocean," Nami said. "No, that's actually much more likely. That would explain why nobody's ever found it yet."

"I think you are all right," Addy said turning back to face the group. "It is indeed on Warship Island and has sunk to the bottom of Ocean." Nami was about to interrupt but Addy held up her hand. "However, I think that it isn't permanently sunk to the bottom but rather rises up every 500 years or so."

"What!" everyone exclaimed at the same time staring at Addy wide eyed and with various expressions of surprise.

"Hey don't look at me. I am just reading what they wrote on the wall here. The Lost Island could appear tomorrow or several hundred years from now. There is also the question of where it is going to rise up. The only one who knows is Ryu."

Apis immediately ran to Ryu and stopped right in front of him. "Think back Ryu! How long has it been since the nest appeared?! Where is it Ryu, on Warship Island?! There is only a painting! Does it bring back any memories?! Our only hope now is that you remember Ryu! When were you there last?! Come on! Please! Remember, Ryu!" Ryu barely seemed to react, though Addy noticed his eyes going wider.

"Ryu!" Apis muttered.

"Alright! So the nest is really is on Warship Island, then?" Luffy asked.

Addy hissed. She really didn't want to go back that way until the Navy had cleared out. This trip was going to be fun, particularly since she messed up her arm.

"Eh?!" Apis remarked. "How did you know what he said, Luffy?

"I just did!"

"You're right. Ryu said he remembered! He says the nest is on an island east of the peak that looks like a warship. But he doesn't know when it is going to rise."

Usopp sighed. "Man! Why does he say that only after we went through all that hardship to get here?!"

"Regardless we know where the island is going to rise up now," Addy said. "The question is how to get past the Navy. They have probably already set up a blockade."

"I'm sorry…" Apis mumbled. "I'm sorry for dragging you all the way out here for something that might not appear for a long time. It was all for nothing."

"Not necessarily," Usopp pointed out. "Who knows? The nest could appear today! And there's no telling for sure without checking it out, right?"

"That's right!" Nami added in. "Being discouraged this easily isn't like you, Apis!"

"You'll never get anything done if you're afraid of failure," Sanji chimed in.

"There's nothing wrong with living a roundabout life," Zoro stated.

Addy grinned, "Besides adventure is never a waste of time, it is just a part of one big journey."

"Everyone…" she mumbled looking like she was about to cry.

Luffy was grinning and then shot in arms up into the air, "So, let's go! Ryu won't get any better if we just stay here!" Addy winched. She was pretty sure that Ryu didn't want to go to the nest to get better, she could sense his life energy draining, he was that close to the brink. It really wouldn't be long now. "Right?!"

Apis nodded and made a sound of encouragement. The rest of them grinned at her. She was ready to do anything for Ryu. "Thank you," she stated. They continued chucking until Zoro stopped suddenly and looked towards where they had fallen in. Addy looked in that direction and saw a slender man with a square like face and purple hair curled in the shape of a hook. He was dressed for business, with a gray blazer and pants, purple undershirt and long thin black glasses. Addy suspected he wasn't good news. Her suspicions were confirmed when Zoro went for his swords, unsheathing slightly the white one. It made a clinking sound as he drew it out of the sheath. He could always sense out trouble. She immediately placed her hand on her whip, ready for whatever trouble he was about to bring. Perhaps this was what Medli warned her about. Addy thought she was speaking about the Marines in general but apparently someone followed them onto the island.

"Is something wrong, Zoro?" Nami asked. His tenseness wasn't only picked up by Addy.

"Someone's here," he stated. That caught Luffy and Usopp attention and the ran back towards the rest of them to see what Zoro and her were looking at. "With bloodlust." Addy would kill for Zoro's senses. She could only sense out dumb things, like blood or if someone was dying, or cursed stuff. To read someone intentions, that took some serious skill.

The man above them started chucking like he was planning their demise. "Thanks for the explanation," he said. His voice was slick and dripping with disdain. Addy unfurled her whip, taking it with her good arm. "Now I know where to find the Dragonite and the nest." She spat. The bastard overheard their entire conversation. If they didn't stop him then they were all dead. It was guaranteed that Medli would come around and kill them all.

"You again?!" Luffy shouted.

"You ran into him before?!" Addy yelled. "And you didn't say anything?!"

"But there is no point if it's at the bottom of the ocean," purple man said. "So it would seem my only option is to take your Sennernryu.

"No!" Apis screamed at him. "Besides we don't know if their nest is on the bottom of the ocean or not!"

"He said he had Sickle-Sickle fruit powers, if I recall…" Sanji said. "That's one nasty guy we got here."

"You all ran into him?!" Addy asked incredulous. "And none of you decided to say anything?!"

"Sickle-Sickle fruit?!" Usopp stated. Addy could see the worry forming on his face. "He has Devil Fruit powers?!"

Zoro then started to walk forwards towards Luffy until he stopped right beside him. "Hey, Luffy," he said catching Luffy attention. "You go on ahead and take Ryu to the ship!" He brought his head back down and smiled at Luffy. "I'll catch up with you later."

Luffy smiled back at him "Got it!"

Addy smiled as well furling her whip back into a coil. Zoro would handle this. "Zoro," she called out. He turned his head towards her, and she shot him a smile. "Make him bleed."

He smiled back at her. "Will do."

"W-W-Whoa, now!" Usopp stuttered. "The ship?! We don't even know where the exit here is!"

"Then we can just make one!" Luffy stated. Suddenly he jumped up in the air clapped his feet together and started running towards the opposite wall from where he was, right past her, Usopp, Nami and Sanji. It was like Wind blowing through. Luffy was really fast.

"You're not seriously gonna…!" Nami started to ask but was interrupted when Luffy ran past her and she held up her arm to protect herself from Wind he was creating. Unfortunately, he wasn't really thinking and ran straight into the wall bouncing off of it. He landed back on the ground with a thump. Well that really wasn't one of his better plans. Not that Luffy ever really planned.

"Huh?" Luffy remarked. "I thought that would bust it open, but…"

They all stared at him sweatdropping. The guy they were fighting probably thought they were a bunch of imbeciles. It was then that tiny rocks started to crumble away from the ceiling and the wall completely broke apart, not far from where Luffy was sitting, all coming down with a crash and sending up a cloud of dust.

Addy stood there stunned for a moment before composing herself and remembering that this was in fact Luffy. She really shouldn't be that surprised anymore.

"It's open! It's open!" he exclaimed. "It worked out! It worked out! Let's go Apis!" He walked back towards her and Ryu, past the rest of them who were caught in between being stunned and angry.

"He's less than a caveman," Sanji muttered.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Sickle man shouted as he jumped down. Zoro immediately intercepted him and Addy could hear what sounded like the clashing of swords. The rest of them climbed onto the cart that they built ready for Luffy to take off. Luffy meanwhile was staring at the painting some more. Addy was slightly concerned he gave himself a concussion.

"Dammit Luffy," Zoro growled. "Get going already!"

"Oh!" Luffy said as if he just remembered Zoro was fighting, "My bad!" He ran to the front of the cart, grabbed onto the rope and proceed to run out of the hole he created dragging the cart behind him with all of them on it, which was surprisingly very fast. All Addy could hear was the sounds of rubble breaks and Usopp screaming. Looking up she saw that they were basically free falling down the mountain.

'I am going to die here,' she thought.

"We all are," Nami shouted. By some miracle the cart managed to land on some sort of long winding branch that acted as a sort of track. At least they were no longer free falling. Addy couldn't hear any of the others, the rumbling of the track blocked most other noise but she assumed most of them were screaming. She was just busy holding onto Ryu for dear life. She should have fought sickle guy and Zoro taken the death cart. Next time she will claim the bad guy.

The landed back on solid ground and the ride got a whole lot bumpier. Addy felt her teeth ratting around. Definitely taking the bad guy next time. It evened out somewhat once they got down the massive hill they walked up, though it still wasn't an easy ride. The others were definitely talking but Addy had no idea what they were saying. She really hoped it wasn't important. Suddenly they were plunged into a dark stone tunnel only to immediately fly out of it and land back along the stone path. They probably sent up a bunch of debris when the landed. Hopefully it would be Zoro and not Sickle guy that found them.

Addy felt more than saw one of the wheel of the cart break off. While it did slow them down sum it also caused them to lose any sense of control that they might have had. They were now falling backwards down the staircase that they had climbed up. After that however, the rest of the ride down was pretty simple. And fortunately none of them lost any limbs. The cart came to an abrupt stop and most of the Straw Hats with the exception of Luffy landed in the water.

" _You guys took forever_ ," Merry said. " _What were you doing?_ _And where is Zoro?"_

"Bit of a story," Addy said floating on her back. She didn't mind landing in the water but the others looked pretty pissed.

"Alright!" Luffy called out one hand on his hat. "We made it, right? Get ready to set sail! Let's go!"

"No more please," Nami muttered. She was sitting in a shallower part of the water. Sanji was treading water while Usopp had somehow landed upside down. Luffy was already starting to pull the cart into the water.

"Damn bastard," Sanji uttered.

"You're totally… gonna pay!" Usopp gurgled.

"Luffy!" Apis called. He looked up and so did Addy. It was then that she noticed the bird. "He says… He says… Zoro's in trouble!"

" _Wait Zoro is in trouble?_ " Merry exclaimed. " _What have you guys been doing?_ "

"What do we do?!" Apis exclaimed. "We gotta help him!"

"Why don't we get on Merry before we do anything," Addy suggested. It's not like we can see him from here."

"Agreed," the other three Straw Hats uttered, while Luffy nodded. In almost no time considering the danger Zoro was supposedly in, Addy wasn't sure how much she trusted a bird's judgement on what danger was, they attached Ryu to Merry and had Apis looking for Zoro through a pair of binoculars that Addy handed to her.

"Found him," Apis exclaimed. "He is up there!" She pointed with her finger. There was no way Addy could make him out but Luffy apparently spotted him. He prepared to stretch out his arm to grab him when Addy thought of something.

"Wait," she said. Luffy halted right before he sent out his arm. "Perhaps we should warn him first somehow?"

"Okay," Luffy said smiling before yelling out Zoro as loudly and extendedly as he could. He then sent his arm flying off. Nami and Sanji were still drying off while Usopp started uttering a pray for Zoro. Addy was tempted to do the same but Ocean would probably not help much in this scenario. If he did live Addy would make sure to keep him up all night.

"Bingo," Luffy said once he grabbed ahold of Zoro.

"Awesome!" Apis exclaimed. Addy wasn't sure that was fully the case. She wondered where Zoro would like to be buried.

"Here we go!" Luffy shouted

Someone Addy could hear Zoro screaming, "I told you to stop doing this!" He more or less crashed into Merry and sent the entire ship shaking.

"Oh. My bad!"

"I swear, someday I will chop this guy up!"

" _I really wish he would stop careening people onto me,"_ Merry stated.

"I don't think I can help you there," Addy replied, helping Zoro up. He was glaring darkly at Luffy who was chuckling. Now that they were all on board Addy went to the pole, followed closely by Zoro and started guiding Merry back out into Ocean. Getting out was a lot easier than getting in. Ocean and Wind almost seemed to be pushing them out. When Merry broke through the barrier again they were back where they were, in the right part of East Blue. She started steering them back to Warship Island, though with the Navy right on their tail. This was going to be easier said than done.

In a piece of good news, Wind seemed to be with them, perhaps Medli put in a few good words. They were leaving them far behind. Ocean seemed to be helping as well, pushing them forward.

"They'll never catch up with us!" Usopp exclaimed.

"The Going Merry is faster and more agile than bulky Navy warships," Nami remarked.

"And she has a personality," Addy called out.

" _Gees, couldn't think of anything nicer to say?"_ Merry remarked.

"But what are we going to do when we get to Warship Island?!" Nami asked.

"We'll be okay!" Luffy stated. Addy barely caught his voice.

"How will we be okay?!"

"We just need to find the nest first so Ryu can get better right?!"

"Easier said than done!" Sanji added in. "Their nest could be at the bottom of the ocean!"

"Then we will have Addy search the bottom of the ocean! Right Addy?!"

"As you wish Captain!" she called back somewhat unhappily. She didn't really want to go searching for some underwater island. It would probably take forever.

"Yeah get the person who can breathe underwater to do the search," Zoro mumbled sarcastically. "It's not like she has better things to do."

"As much as I appreciate that," Addy stated. "I also don't want to have wasted my entire time on this trip. Besides it might allow me to get some fish."

"Anyways, we need to get back as fast as we can!" Nami exclaimed. "Addy? Can you do anything? We don't have time to be messing with the Navy!"

"What do you say Merry?" Addy asked. "Think you can speed up some?"

" _I wish,"_ Merry said. " _But there is a Marine ship in front of us. And it looks rather strange."_

"What?" Addy remarked leaving the room along with Zoro. Together the two of them walked to the figurehead where Luffy was sitting. In front of them was a classic massive Navy warship. Addy had only ever seen a few of them, the Navy did not make them anymore for some reason. The only difference was that it had a giant golden head stuck to the front of it. Its mouth was wide open revealing sharp fangs. Addy couldn't exactly tell what creature it was but it didn't look friendly. It also had a giant cannon sticking out of its forehead, which didn't help anything.

"Wow! Cool!" Luffy shouted. "It's like a gargoyle!"

Addy rolled her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. Luffy thought pretty much everything was cool. No matter they could deal with one Marine ship. That is when Addy noticed the colored flags being raised on either side and a whole fleet of ships came from behind the large one blocking Merry from being able to go forward.

She heard various gasps from her crewmates and Sanji looked at what was happening in front of them stunned.

"Is this for reals?!" Sanji asked.

"Just how many ships does the damn navy have?!" Zoro question tightening his grip on his swords.

"Too may," Addy said unfurling her whip. "Let's see if we can remedy that!" The ships sailed past the large one and started forming a chain link fence between all of them. So there was no way they were going to break through. Time for a new plan.

"What now?!" Apis said. "They have blocked us off!"

"Jump onto a ship, kick the guys off, and cut the links!" Usopp stated somewhat boldly. "That's the only choice, obviously!"

"That's not actually a bad plan," Addy pointed out.

"Wow!" Apis exclaimed. "You can do that, Usopp?!"

He seem to hesitate for a moment before raising his arm and shouting, "Go! Luffy! Zoro! Sanji! Addy!"

"Doesn't sound too bad to me, though!" Zoro said, unsheathing his white sword partially. There was a grin on his face. He was about as excited for this fight as she was.

"Eh?!" Apis called. "But, are you serious?! There is no way you could survive if you tried that!"

Nami tapped her on the shoulder, "It's okay, Apis. Things'll work out. But make it quick, you guys! And Addy we need you to stay here to pilot the ship!"

Addy growled. "Someday I am going to give you all lessons!" She refurled her whip and walked back to the pole. Nami was right unfortunately. No one else could really pilot Merry. However the next group of bad guys they run across will be hers.

" _Please don't_ ," Merry said. " _I don't think anything good can come out of it."_

"You can count on me Nami dear," Sanji exclaimed.

"Alright," Luffy called out. "Let's go!"

" _Cannonballs approaching_ ," Merry called. Addy swiftly move the pole around so that Merry moved through the gaps. With how many ships there were this was going to be a hassle.


	66. Coming up Dragons Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _I know I am slightly late with this update but things have been hectic. As always review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy had been in some tough sailing situations in her life but trying to navigate a caravel, with a Sennernryu attached, while dodging cannon balls with limited vision and the only real guidance being said caravel and a increasingly panicked navigator had to be somewhere in the top 20. She managed to dodge another four launched at them, getting them ever closer to the Navy ships blocking them in. The splashing of the balls as they landed in Ocean and the sound of the cannons firing permeated the air. Addy felt as another bunch landed in Ocean, this was actually going surprisingly well.

" _Another couple coming from the right_ ," Merry shouted just as Nami did. Addy swiftly moved around them. It was helpful that they were not trying to hit the raft. Merry had been able to discern that. " _Three more at 4'oclock_."

"Got it," Addy said maneuvering around. Surprisingly this system was working. Addy hoped that would continue. Nami and Apis were in the room with her, everyone else was still on deck.

Out of the corner of Addy's eye she saw Apis run out of the room and heard Usopp, who was standing right outside the doorway say, "Apis! It's dangerous! Go back inside!"

"I can't leave Ryu all by himself!" she replied.

"Hey, you! Wait!"

"She might be safer on the raft if she can hold on," Addy stated. "The Marines are not targeting it."

"You think?" Nami replied. "Four more at 11."

"Understood." Addy gently moved the pole. Any large movements would just lock Merry up. Her shoulder unfortunately was starting to bug her. She could feel it complaining. It made her uneasy about how much longer she could keep this up.

" _We got two more coming, straight ahead,"_ Merry said. Addy moved Merry so that she was directly in between the two cannon balls so they missed them entirely. Though it still caused Merry to tip forwards and back,

Addy heard tumbling on the deck, she hoped no one was caught unawares.

"Hey!" Usopp called out. "We've been hit from behind!"

" _He's over exaggerating,"_ Merry stated. " _You got things handled. Another three at two o'clock."_

 _"_ Doesn't feel like I do," Addy said gritting her teeth. Usopp was outside yelling at Sanji that they had been hit. Addy sensed that he was running around like a maniac. Probably proclaiming that they were about to sink or something.

" _He's calmed down now, Sanji told him that everything is okay."_

"He better be calm, he isn't doing anything." Nami was looking at her like she had gone insane. She looked like she wanted to ask Addy something but decided not to at the last moment. Addy turned to the right in order to dodge another flurry of cannon balls. She would kill for a wheel at this point, so much more control. Addy turned the pole back to the right, while urging Merry to keep on going. Not that Merry needed much encouragement, she was doing amazingly well.

" _Addy_!" Merry proclaimed. " _Another one is coming for us, I don't think I can dodge around this one._ " Addy cursed wishing she could see what was going on.

"Hey!" Luffy yelled out. "A ball's coming this way!"

Nami looked at her and Addy shook her head. Without knowing where exactly it was there wasn't much she could do considering she was in the middle of a turn and Merry wasn't that maneuverable. Her shoulder was also starting to ache.

"Addy can't do more than what she is doing!" Nami shouted. "Do something on your end!"

"Okay!" Luffy shouted back. "I'll do something!"

"Please don't let that something be breaking something on Merry," Addy murmured.

"Gomu-Gomu no Ballon!"

"Well I guess that works."

" _Hey, he did manage to get it away and he hit one of the Navy ships as well,"_ Merry pointed out.

Suddenly Addy heard Marine alarms blaring. What was going on out there?

" _Um, they apparently have a giant cannon. You have any ideas?"_

"Nami you might want to check what is going on outside," Addy said.

Nami nodded and left. Not a moment later Addy heard her yell, "What is that?! A direct hit from that and our ship will be blown to shreds!"

"It's that bad then?" Addy asked.

"We'll be okay," she heard Luffy proclaim. "I'll just bounce it back again!"

"Don't be stupid," Nami shouted at him. "Addy turn the ship about, you guys work the rear sail!"

"She wants me to do what now?" Addy asked.

" _I think she wants to try and escape,"_ Merry stated. " _Which isn't a bad plan considering the massive size of the cannon."_

Addy felt Luffy starting pulling the rear sail and Addy started making movements to turn Merry around. At the same time though she felt Usopp load and fire one of their own cannons. She hoped whatever he was aiming at was worth it.

" _He just blew up the giant cannon!"_ Merry stated. " _He is amazing_!"

It certainly was a feat. Usopp was probably not going to stop talking about it for days. She could even hear him bragging from here.

"Howdya like that?!" he said. "This is what happens when Usopp gets serious!"

" _Um Addy we have essentially stopped moving,"_ Merry proclaimed.

"Well of course," Addy said removing her hands from the pole and walking towards the others." "You are a sailing ship and since we are no longer going with Wind…."

"Now's our chance!" Nami announced. Addy was standing right beside her in front of all the others. "Let's act quickly and cut some links to open the path! Except for you Addy! You need to stay here in case we need to move the ship quickly!"

"Oh come on!" she grumbled. Zoro gave her a sympathetic smile. "You don't let me do anything fun!"

"I'll make it up to you later, but you boys need to go now!"

"Right, Nami dear," Sanji said giving a thumbs up.

Zoro turned towards their captain, "Luffy," he stated simply.

"Leave it to me!" Luffy replied. "Gomu-Gomu no…." he started stretching out his arm all the way out before swinging it back towards the Navy ships. "Bridge!" He grabbed ahold of the railing of one of the ships. They must still be distracted by the giant cannon blowing up. Zoro and Sanji started running along his arm, making their way towards the enemy.

"Are you sure I can't go?" Addy asked Nami. She was pretty sure she was whining but at this point she didn't really care."

"Yes! Now stay here and protect Merry!" Addy rolled her eyes but complied. There would be plenty of Marines to fight in the future.

"Alright!" Luffy stated. "Ryu! Just hold on! Here goes!" Luffy launched himself towards the ships joining the rest of the monster trio.

"You know I just thought of something," Usopp said.

"Yeah?" Addy questioned.

"Do you think any of them can actually break those chains?"

Addy fished around in her bag for her collapsible telescope. Once she got ahold of it she peered through it looking at the chains.

"They appear to be cast iron I think, they are not really all that well made. Some appear to have rust on them," Addy remarked. "Shouldn't be a problem for those three. Even if it was steel they would still find a way to break them."

Nami and Usopp sighed with relief. Addy looked over her two crewmates and then back towards the others. There really was a huge power gap between them. Addy bridged that gap to some extent but still…. She tighten her grip on her whip, she still could become so much stronger than she was. The burning in her shoulder intensified and Addy winced. Perhaps Nami was right in not letting her fight. It wasn't anything a proper swim in Ocean couldn't take care of but still… During that year in East Blue she really let herself go downhill. She glanced at her flask and hesitated slightly before taking a shot. There was only so much she was able to handle.

"Looks like the Marines have finally come out of the woodwork," Nami said. Addy glanced through the telescope and sure enough Luffy and Sanji were taking out the Marines while Zoro was busy cutting the chains. He seemed however to be taking his time… Addy sort of wondered why. She didn't know much about swordsmanship, she could handle one decently, but that didn't mean she was an expert. Sure enough however, Zoro cleanly sliced through it.

"Yeah!" Usopp exclaimed. "That's it! That's it! You're so wonderful!" He was basically jumping up and down with excitement. "Keep it up! Chop those things up good!" Marines started pouring off the other ships and Addy thought this might be her chance.

"Nami," she asked. "You wouldn't mind if I jumped in Ocean for a moment? It's my shoulder."

"You really hurt yourself didn't you?" Nami asked. Addy nodded. No point in lying. Her own weaknesses was something she was never going to keep hidden, considering that it could put the crew in danger. "Alright do what you must, but the second anything changes you need to be back on the ship."

"Understood." She climbed onto the railing and jumped off the edge letting the water overcome her. Immediately the pain faded and she felt herself able to move freely. Twisting and turning in Ocean she felt her body filled with renewed vigor. From here her senses were heightened and she could see the Marines falling into the water. A whole group of them had just plummeted in. They seemed completely helpless in the water, unable to move properly. All they could do was swim to the surface. Addy laughed, the boys were doing really well then.

She swam towards Apis and Ryu. Might as well check to see if they were okay. When she popped her head above the water she could see Apis staring at her crewmates amazed.

"Wow…" she remarked. "I didn't know they were like this."

"Neither did I when I first met them," Addy said. She swore Apis jumped a few feet in the air.

"It's not polite to scare someone like that!" she yelled at her.

Addy flashed her a grin. "Sorry, I guess I sort of forgot. How are you two doing?"

"We are okay, for the most part."

"Addy!" Nami called down. "There is only one chain left! Let's get moving!"

"That's my cue to go," Addy remarked. She dived back under the water and sprang up back onto the ship, her arm feeling much better.

"Alright now you two take care of the sails, I will manage the helm."

"Aye!" Usopp shouted as Nami ran off to cover the sails. Addy made her way back to the pole taking it over and reconnecting with the ship.

" _You know this is why I like it when you pilot_ ," Merry stated. " _I don't have this connection with anyone else_."

"You wouldn't," Addy replied. "Not even among my own kind. It's actually my specialty. I am a spiritualist."

" _You serious? Do you know how rare that is?_ "

"I am the first one in several generations. Not that it was easy to figure out. I mean we all can speak to ships and Pearl has been fully formed for eons so talking to him wasn't exactly a tip off."

" _Wait until I tell all the other ships we come across. They are never going to believe me."_

"You do that."

Addy turned Merry back around and soon they were heading to where Zoro and the others were cutting through the chain. As soon as they were through it would be smooth sailing ahead. Navy warships were all power and no maneuverability. Essentially the opposite of Merry. They were almost at the chain when Addy felt an explosion right in front of them, shaking Merry to her very boards. She managed to keep herself steady and keep ahold of the helm. Whatever it was it brought Merry to a complete stop.

"What the hell was that?" she asked. She was not in the mood for more problems to crop up.

" _Some dude with purple hair in a rowboat_ ," Merry remarked. " _I think he has Devil Fruit powers_."

"That guy again?" she growled. "I thought Zoro took care of him."

" _Well he is approaching_ _Ryu and Apis_."

"Shit!" Addy raced out of the room and toward the back of the ship where the raft was attached. If he laid one finger on them. Nami and Usopp were already at the back of the ship overlooking the incident.

"Girl!" he shouted. "It's time to hand over the Sennernryu!"

She stood in front of Ryu spreading her arms, trying to block him ineffectively. "No!" she shouted. "I'll never give you Ryu!" Addy jumped beside her and unfurled her whip, snapping it in the air. One step and she would slice him open.

"Hand it over like the good girls you are!"

"No!"

"Yeah you are going to have to get through me first!" Addy growled. "I don't care what weird Devil Fruit power you have, you are not taking a step closer to Ryu."

"We will see about that," he muttered. He brought his hands up and for the first time Addy noticed how long his nails were. Addy deepened her stance, ready to move at the last possible moment. "I can chop you into pieces with wind slashes at any time, you know." She snorted. If that was what she was dealing with than it would be no problem. She had been dealing with that forever. Faye did not exactly hold back.

"Stop right there!" Nami shouted. "Lay a hand on the kid and you'll pay. Addy!"

"Don't worry Nami," Addy stated her smile forming into a weird sort of smirk. "I wasn't planning on holding back."

"Y-Yeah!" Usopp also called out. "Usopp won't sit by quietly either!"

"Fools," purple haired man said. He was the fool. Addy held the advantage considering they were surrounded by water. "I made that wind slash just now miss on purpose."

"….Why?" Addy asked. She never understood why people did that. If you can take someone out you should. Well at least she knew his Devil Fruit power now and it wasn't a pleasant one.

Apparently purple haired man did not like her question as he growled back at her, "Get in my way and this time I won't miss! I'll blow your entire ship apart!"

" _Addy_ ," Merry said. " _Be careful here. You don't want to…."_

"I would love to see you try to do that while sinking in Ocean," Addy stated boldly. "With how narrow your eyes are you might be blind so in case you missed it, we are surrounded by water."

" _Never mind I guess_ …"

"You take one move to harm the ship and I will throw you in the water before you can blink. Take one more towards us and you would probably cause this raft to collapse sinking us, including the Sennernryu to the bottom of Ocean. You have basically put yourself in a lose, lose situation." Addy was bluffing somewhat. If he did windblast them, then there would be a chance it would kill Apis, herself and Ryu and not damage the raft. Hopefully he wasn't willing to take the chance. Also he probably could destroy the ship before Addy made it to him. Addy could guess how quickly he moved, but he was unsure about her.

He and Addy stared at each other unblinking before he finally broke down.

"Tie the raft to our boat," he shouted at the Marines in his rowboat. One of them jump onto the raft and Addy immediately slammed the hilt of her whip into his head causing him to fall into Ocean. The other one who got up hesitated, staring at the spot where his comrade had fallen. She wasn't playing games here. If he thought she wouldn't kill, he was about to have a big surprise on his hands.

Addy thought he realized this as he stared at her and glared. She stared right back not flinching in the slightest. Not wanting to risk it however she slashed at the ropes tying the raft to Merry. They cut cleanly and they started drifting off away from Merry. Purple man growled and order his men to follow them.

"I will be taking the Sennernryu now!" he stated getting more and more aggravated.

"Yeah sure you will," Addy said continuing to stand in his way. Unfortunately she couldn't stand here forever though she was surprised he hadn't figured it out by now. Besides there was also one other factor at play here. She saw him talk into a den den mushi. From what she could tell he was apparently disobeying his employer. The drama was increasing.

It was then that the cannon balls started being fired again, though this time at the rowboat purple man was in. That was way too close for comfort. One wrong move and the raft could sink. She would be able to save Apis no doubt but there was no way she would be able to rescue Ryu. Unfortunately, there was no control mechanism on the raft, they really should have built one for this particular scenario. The balls were getting ridiculously close to their location.

"Stop…" Apis started to mumble biting her lip. "Stop." She turned around rapidly to face Purple man. "I'm begging you! Please don't harass Ryu anymore!" She was clenching her fists. "He hasn't done anything wrong!"

"Be quiet," he stated.

"I have to take him to the nest right away! So please stop this!"

"Addy placed a hand on her shoulder and glared at their opponent, "There is no reasoning with him Apis, save your voice." Though they were slowly running out of options and he was slowly losing patience. Addy saw only one way out of this, and that option was almost nonexistent. Not unless some sort of miracle occurred.

"I'll never let him have Ryu! Never! Never!" Ryu seemed to be in some sort of daze. As if he wasn't fully aware of his surroundings.

"I've had enough of this," the man snarled. "Get out of my way or I will cut both of you to ribbons!" He finally stepped towards the raft, aiming for Apis. Addy stepped in front of her but there was no need. Ryu had finally had enough. Raising himself up, for the first time since Addy had seen him, he stood up. Purple man turned around to bark orders at the Marines not knowing what was going on behind him. The Marines in sheer terror jumped out of the little rowboat.

"Hey!" Purple man shouted. "Where are you going?! Get back here!" He finally turned around and saw Ryu standing. He turned an interesting shade of blue and his mouth hung wide open. Ryu brought one of his wings and whacked him off the rowboat several feet into Ocean. Well he was dead. Unfortunately that didn't stop the cannon balls. Ryu decided at that moment to enter some sort of trance, staring at Apis who was looking relieved and amazed.

"Um Addy," Apis started. "Ryu wants to say something to you but I am not sure that it makes any sense."

"Alright…" Addy replied.

Apis coughed before starting, "baby daughter of Ocean. I thank you for all that you have done. You do not deserve the burden that has been placed upon you. You have brought honor to your name." Addy chocked up at that. Even though it happened 900 years ago, she carried that burden and probably always will. Ryu would have been alive at that time and he would have seen the chaos and destruction. The blood, death, and torture. "I sense that you have a touch of dragon about you. I have been honored to travel with you."

"No Ryu," she bowed slightly. "The honor has been mine." Ryu unfurled his wings and stood up to max height. He then roared, loud, proud and clear. Addy could feel it vibrate through her entire being, yet unlike everyone else, including Apis she didn't need to cover her ears shielding them the same way she did underwater to keep water from flowing in. It caused massive ripples and waves in Ocean and she felt the raft start to crack. Yet it was also serene and brought back memories of another roar that shook the hearts of men to their core. She finished off the rest of her flask. Riley would have loved Ryu. She grasped her locket. Ocean, Addy loved Ryu. This entire time he knew what she was and what she could do. Yet he still trusted her.

As suddenly as he started, he stopped and folded his wings back up. Everything was quiet once again and Addy unplugged her ears.

"Ryu!" Apis exclaimed. "You can move! That's great!" She hugged his nose as best as she could. She started laughing with joy. "That's great!" Addy couldn't help but chuckle as well despite their situation. However Apis stopped laughing and looked at Ryu curiously, "What? Addy?"

"Yeah?"

"He wants you to get on his back."

Addy stood there absolutely dumbstruck. There was no way. "Are you sure?"

Apis made a sound of affirmation. Addy felt herself tear up again. She walked up to Ryu and placed her forehead against his.

"It would be my honor to fly with you," she mumbled before walking around and jumping on his back. He kneeled down so that it was easier for her to get on. When she was safely seated he stood back up and started flapping his whips. She tightened her grip on his feathers. It had been so long since she had done this. Addy felt his body rumble as he took off, Apis becoming smaller.

"You're flying," Apis called out. "You're flying, Ryu!"

It was then that the cannon balls came flying again. Luckily they all missed but it was some close calls.

"Ryu!" Addy said. "If you don't gain height you are going to be screwed." He screeched and Addy wasn't sure if he was trying to answer her or not. Where was Medli when she needed her? Apparently Ryu had taken some blows as he was now hovering in the air. Another barrage of balls came forth, this time from the large ship. Addy unfurled her whip and swiped at several of those coming in, deflecting a few of them. Unfortunately they had a very short fuse and blew up in the area causing shrapnel to be thrown around. Ryu took the brunt of it but apparently he was unfazed as he shrieked and started flying towards the ships.

"Latch ditch stand?" Addy asked. Ryu growled. "Sounds good to me." More cannon balls started flying towards them and Addy deflected as many as she could. As they approached the main ship, Ryu roared and flew up higher.

"Oi!" Addy said. "I can't deflect them from here!" Several of the balls hit Ryu's belly and the underside of his wings and he started slowly sinking towards Ocean until he crashed into the sea with a splash. She felt the water splash over her though it dried instantly. Green feathers floated on the surface and Addy felt Ryu life start to fade.

"Don't worry," she whispered rubbing his back. "I'm here. You're not going to go out alone." She felt him rumble. What that meant Addy didn't have the faintest idea.

"Ryu!" Luffy shouted. Addy looked up and saw him flying through the air. He landed right next to Addy and ran up to Ryu's head. "Ryu! Hang in there!"

"Captain," Addy mumbled before taking a deep breath. "Captain he is dying. There is nothing more we can do." Ryu grumbled as if agreeing with her.

"Hey, now!" Luffy said. "What are you two saying?! Don't talk about dying!"

"Captain, I can feel it. He has been dying since we met him. All this just sped it up."

Luffy looked at her and then back at Ryu. "Yeah. I know. I will save Apis!" Was this what it was like for everyone else whenever she talked to Merry? Now she sort of understood why they gave her odd looks. "And take you to the nest! So try hard to stay alive! Isn't that right Addy?!"

"Of course it is Captain. We said that we will bring you to the nest and that is exactly what we are going to do."

* * *

Jag: She really does need some action. Unfortunately I don't think will be getting any for awhile considering the upcoming arcs. We will see however.


	67. Coming up Dragons Part 7

_Really important author's note:_

 _First off I want to thank everyone for there support. I am glad everyone is enjoying it. Unfortunately I have some bad news. I will be going on a hiatus for a few months. There might be a scattering of updates but don't expect anything consistent. It won't be until August that we will get back to the regular schedule. I hope everyone enjoys the chapter. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _This is the remastered version._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Unfortunately despite their encouragement, Ryu was still sinking into the water. Bubbles started forming where his mouth was underwater. This wasn't good.

"Hang in there!" Luffy said pulling on some of Ryu feathers. "What happened to going to the nest?! Try hard to live!"

"Exactly," Addy added in. "Do you really want to die in this patch of Ocean or at your home?" Wherever that was Addy thought. For all they knew they could be right on top of it. Right in front of them was Warship Island after all and technically they were in the right place if Ryu's memory could be trusted. She did feel a disturbance deep in Ocean, like something was rising quickly.

Right then the massive Navy ship released a harpoon, coming towards them rapidly. Addy gulped. If that hit Ryu….

Instead of that occurring Luffy plucked it out of midair as if it was no trouble at all.

"What are they doing?" he asked his voice low. Addy detected the underlying anger in his tone. Addy smirked. Looks like the Navy finally opened the floodgates, they pissed off her captain. Now all she had to do was wait for the blood to flow.

"I don't know Captain," she answered her tone smooth. "But I can venture a guess that they wanted to reel in Ryu." Luffy gritted his teeth and glared at the offending ship, his empty hand clenched in a fist. "Shall we find a way to sink that monstrosity Captain?"

"Good idea Addy." He threw the harpoon as hard as he could toward the ship that it came from. That should do the trick. It hit its target perfectly causing a loud crash and rumble through the water. Though unfortunately it didn't sink the ship but only damaged it.

"Ryu is our friend!" Luffy shouted at them. "He's a dear friend who's on a journey with us!"

"Don't bother Captain. Those monsters could never understand," Addy spat. Ryu was sinking further into Ocean. Much more and Luffy would be vulnerable. One of his feet was already partially in the water.

"You're fine staying here?!" Luffy asked Ryu. Apparently they were back to talking to each other. Luffy was much calmer, the rage somewhat dissipated. "What kind of wimpiness is that?! You still haven't accomplished your goal! What happened to going to your nest?! Don't give up by saying you're staying here! Of course I will!" Addy really wanted to know what they were talking about. Perhaps she would be more careful with talking to Merry since it was rather odd watching someone basically talk to themselves. "Don't worry about Apis! Just think about yourself now!" Luffy was being reflected in Ryu's eye. Those two definitely had a connection.

Suddenly the disturbance in Ocean became a lot more powerful and everything started shaking around them. There was this sound, almost like a whale call, that went through the air rapidly. It was like the entire sea was shaking. Addy grinned. Looks like Ryu's memory was to be trusted after all. After 500 years, the island would rise again. Luffy was still yanking on Ryu trying to get him to get up but it was completely ineffective.

"Relax Captain," Addy said. "We found the nest."

"What?!" he asked. He stopped pulling Ryu and looked at her.

"That's what the rumbling is. We are right on top of it."

"Oh…. Awesome!" he grinned and Addy smiled back. Looks like they were able to bring Ryu home after all. Addy could start to see Ocean give way to land. How many forces were at work to make this happen? Addy doubted she would ever fully know. "Ryu says your right!"

"Of course I am. Nothing is gonna stop us now. After all…." Addy was interrupted by cannon balls splashing in the water right next to them. Was the Navy still trying to kill them? Addy growled. They would pay for this. In good news land this also motivated Ryu enough to rise up and roar towards the sky. It was low and loud, almost like he was calling to someone.

"I see!" Luffy exclaimed. Addy looked at him curiously. "You have dear friends of your own, too!"

"Wait, are you saying that he is calling the other Sennernryu?!" Addy asked. Luffy nodded as if that was all the explanation that was needed. Her captain frustrated her sometimes.

Out of the corner of her eye she saw what looked like a black cloud forming in the sky. It was coming towards them rapidly. Getting her portable telescope out of her bag she looked through it and gasped. Sennernryu. Hundreds of Sennernryu were flying towards them, all waiting for the nest to rise up. Addy could see the shadows they casted on Ocean, heard there various squeaks and calls. Soon they were flying right above them. Luffy was laughing at the sight, and Addy could only gap in amazement clutching her locket. What would Riley give to see this now? Ryu bellowed again lifting is head up towards the sky before collapsing back in the water with a loud splash.

"Ryu!" Luffy shouted. Ryu opened his eye for what Addy expected to be the last time. His life was almost gone, she could sense it fading. She tried to hold back the tears that were threatening to fall. The world was losing someone great and nothing would ever bring it back.

Luffy nodded at something Ryu said. "Yeah! I know!" he smiled. "I promise I'll tell Apis!" Ryu slowly closed his eyes and Addy knew that he was gone. The Sennernryu above started calling, as if mourning there fallen friend. He was probably more than that. Sennernryu after all did live a very long time. The noise they were making it was like a whale's song. Addy closed her eyes and listened to their cries before they ceased.

Addy opened her eyes and stood up right next to her Captain. There was still one last thing left to do and that was to sink that monstrosity of a ship.

"Addy," Luffy said. "I am going to launch us up. That okay with you?"

Addy wrapped her arms around her captain's next. "It is more than fine. Let's fly."

"Gomu-Gomu no…." Luffy stretched his arm towards the Sennernryu flying high above them grabbing onto the neck of one of them. "Rocket!" Addy felt herself launching through the air, Wind howling past her ears. They flew past the Sennernryu Luffy grabbed onto.

"Gonna borrow your neck," Luffy stated. "And…" he stretched his foot out into the air. It was then that Addy noticed they were right above the large Navy Ship "Battle Axe!" Luffy brought his food down and let go of the Sennernryu neck, sending them both plummeting towards Ocean. Luffy's foot cut straight through the ship like it was plywood instead of metal, slicing it in half. It caused a giant column of water to shoot up into the sky. He pulled his foot back with a snap and he landed perfectly on a piece of debris. Addy found the whole thing slightly jarring but at least she wasn't injured.

Addy let go of his neck and walked around, shaking out the tension in her limbs. It was almost like it was raining, with all the water droplets falling from the water that was blasted up. Once the water stopped falling Luffy just looked up and stared at the Marine troops in front of them, grimacing. Naturally they panicked and started running away as quickly as they could. Above them the Sennernryu were circling. Probably above the place where the island was going to rise. Also at that moment ships started crashing into each other leaving a vast opening for them to sail through.

"Ready to get back on board Merry?" Luffy asked. She wrapped her arms around him again.

"Of course Captain. We still have a job to do," she answered back. Luffy chuckled and once again stretched his arm into the sky grabbing onto another Sennernryu. This time however he sent them flying towards the Merry. Addy closed her eyes and gulped. Hopefully the landing wouldn't be too rough.

Luckily Luffy took in most of the impact of landing on the ship, though Addy could feel it rattle through her. It caused Merry to rock around and the rest of the Straw Hats to lose their footing and collapse in a pile on top of each other. Addy let go and brushed herself off. Her arm was aching but otherwise she felt fine.

"Yo," Luffy said raising his arm towards the rest of the crew.

"Don't give me, Yo!" Nami shrieked at him. "Can't you come back more quietly?! You're gonna wreck the ship!"

" _She is right you know,_ " Merry said. " _Think you could talk to him about being a bit more cautious_?"

"That would be a losing battle," Addy murmured.

At that moment Apis came on deck looking at where Ryu had sunk into Ocean. Tears started to form in her eyes. "Ryu" she called out sounding like she was about to burst into tears.

Ocean started rumbling again and Addy knew it wouldn't be much longer now before the island rose up.

"An earthquake?!" Sanji asked. Someone when Luffy landed he ended up upside down, with his head on the deck and his legs in the air. Addy sighed. So they hadn't figured it out yet have they?

"Again?!" Usopp questioned covering his head with his hands. His eyes were darting about as if trying to find the danger.

"Ryu," Apis said. "I wasn't able to keep my promise to you, Ryu. I wasn't able to take you to the nest."

Luffy took a few steps towards her and stopped. "No," he uttered. "Ryu's wish came true." Apis flinched started and turned towards Luffy. He had a neutral expression on his face, the brim of his hat covering his eyes. "Can't you hear the Sennernryu's voices?" There was a blast Wind erupting from the center of where the Sennernryu were circling. It almost knocked everyone off their feet again though this time they managed to keep themselves steady. The rumbling and shaking intensified and massive ripples formed in Ocean. Ocean was start being pulled back and giant columns of water erupted from the surface falling away to reveal giant stone pillars. It was almost as if the water was being drained somewhere as Addy looked down and saw land being revealed below them.

"So that's what it meant!" Nami shouted. She was also looking at what was happening beneath them.

"What is it Nami dear?!" Sanji asked.

"The nest really is here! There are not called Sennernryu because of their life spans! It's only because they come to this island only once every 1000 years!"

"Actually they are called that because of their life spans," Addy called out. "Sennernryu live for roughly 1000 years. This island is there mating ground as well as their graveyard and I think it rises every 500 years, sticks around for a while before sinking back down again."

"Let me guess the writing on the walls told you?!" Addy nodded and could hear Nami sigh. She did give her a lot of trouble didn't she.

" _You give us both trouble,"_ Merry murmured.

Navy ships were being destroyed left and right, being smashed by the rocks that rose out of Ocean. It was glorious.

"Sennernryu are migratory!" Nami stated. "And it's by no coincidence that they've all flocked here now! It's no wonder it's called Lost Island! Because it only does rise every 500 years! So of course no one remembers the last time it surfaced! And now this very moment is when the nest has appeared!"

The rumbling stopped and surrounding Warship Island was now a vast amount of land. The Sennernryu started landing on it in droves. All across the island were Sennernryu who looked like they had been frozen in stone. Pools of water littered the ground as well and the Sennernryu started making all sorts of noise, squeaking, squawking, roaring.

The Straw Hats stood in amazement, looking at what had appeared before their very eyes. More and more of the Sennernryu were landing and perching themselves amidst the rock.

"Is that what I think it is?" Apis asked looking over the railing.

"Yeah!" Luffy answered. "It must be the nest Ryu wanted to go back to!"

"This is?" Apis made a noise of shock and surprise before racing off towards the ladder and climbing down it.

"Why she suddenly run off?" Nami asked. Addy shrugged but then saw what Apis was looking at.

"I have a fair idea," Addy said jumping off Merry. The rest of the Straw Hats took the safer root of climbing down the ladder. Apis was quick for her age. She was already halfway there.

"Ryu," Luffy muttered. Everyone except Addy looked at him in surprise. "Ryu is here."

"Ryu!" Apis screamed running towards Ryu's body. He was laying in the water and as much as she wanted to she could not reach him only making it up to her ankles in the water. "Ryu! Ryu! RYU!"

"Just by coincidence, the place that Ryu sunk was where the nest was," Nami uttered. "Do you suppose that might help him rest in peace better?"

Addy remained silent but grasped Zoro's hand. He looked at her but grasped equally as tight. He remained stone faced but Addy saw a look in his eye like he was trying to hold something back. Not tears but something else. Perhaps a memory.

"It's okay! He said his wish came true when he was sinking," Luffy stated. He didn't elaborate further and Addy wasn't going to ask.

Usopp was looking around, wondering what this place was. "So this is the nest?" he asked. "Look at all these weird rocks." Addy assumed he was talking about the ones that looked like Sennernryu. They were pretty strange.

"I think they're made out of Dragonite," Sanji stated. He walked closer to one. The rock or whatever was a Sennernryu holding his head up, roaring towards the sky. Its wings were stretched out as if ready to take off. "Look at this rock here. Doesn't it look just like a Sennernryu?"

"Oh, now that you mention it…" did Usopp not really notice before? "But why are there rock Sennernryu?"

"Because they were on the ocean floor for 500 long years," Nami pointed out. "The materials and their bodies fossilized."

"Oh, I see!"

"Do you really get it?" Zoro asked him.

"Nope! Not at all!" Usopp replied. Addy sighed and rolled her eyes.

"This is there graveyard…"she said. "This is where they come to die."

"A Sennernryu graveyard?" Zoro asked.

"Yeah," Addy answered softly. "Don't tell me you haven't noticed? There is a sense of death about this place."

"No!" Apis yelled. "It's not! Ryu said going back to his nest would make him better! This can't be a graveyard!"

"Apis," Nami murmured unsure on how to tell her the truth.

Apparently Luffy did however. "Ryu was a lost Sennernryu."

"Luffy?" Nami asked. Addy let go of Zoro and placed a hand on Nami's shoulder. If anyone could get Apis to understand it would be Luffy.

"He was all alone for 500 years. But he made friends with you, Apis. He said out of the 1000 years he was alive, this last year with you was his happiest." Apis was starting to cry. Addy could see the tears forming in her eyes.

"Luffy…. You understand the Sennernryu language?" Nami asked.

"I just somehow knew," he answered. Addy cocked her head to the side. Could it be that he could hear the voices of all things? According to Sarabi Roger had that gift. Could Luffy have it as well? 'Only time would tell' Addy thought.

"Time would tell what Addy?" Nami asked. Crap! Did she really say that out loud?

"Nothing important," Addy replied. She really needed to learn how to curb her tongue.

"But there's no doubt about it!" Luffy stated as if the rest of the conversation did not occur.

"Liar," Apis uttered. The Straw Hats turned her attention back on her. "You're such a liar, Ryu! If this is the nest… If you made it back to the nest then open your eyes again!" Tears were streaming down her face now. Tiny droplets landing in the water around her feet. "Talk to me! Get better!" She was openly crying now and Addy felt the empty part of her soul ache. How long ago was it that she uttered those exact words? She gripped her locket tightly. It was far too long.

"Ryu wasn't lying at all," Luffy said. "He said the Sennernryu return to the nest every 500 years and are reborn again."

"Ryu said that?" Apis asked. The tears had stopped and she was looking at Luffy as if expecting a miracle. He raised his arm and pointed towards a rock on the ground. There was a cracking noise and Addy thought she saw the rock start to break apart. Soon cracks started appearing all over it and with one last crack came out a baby Sennernryu.

"Of course," she said groaning at herself. "I am a complete moron. Sennernryu are immediately reincarnated once they die. The eggs are laid by the Sennernryu here who are only 500 years old and then the eggs are submerged until the island rises again. Meanwhile the older Sennernryu die and are reborn into the eggs that have rested on this island for 500 years. Those who have just given birth raise them on this island until they are ready to fly and the cycle begins again." As if to prove her point three Sennernryu landed around the newly hatched Sennernryu. Apis was staring at the baby in amazement as it called out to her before walking back up to them.

"You know, Apis," Nami stated. "This isn't just a Sennernryu graveyard. I think it's a place that connects to new life."

"Oh definitely," Addy added on. "I can feel the spiritual vibes of this place. I think the reincarnation cycle can only occur here."

"Thank you, everyone!" Apis stated. "For bringing Ryu back to the nest. I realize it now, too. I realize what kind of place this is and why Ryu wanted to return here so badly." She stood right in front of them. "It's an amazing place, isn't it? Now I understand why my ancestors went so far as to build a temple." There was a moment of silence between all of them. Addy smiled at her. Wind had some incredible Legacies that was for certain. "Thank you, Luffy!" For the first time since they got here she saw Apis smile. "Okay! Let's go back to the village! Everyone there must be worried, and probably surprised, too! " That's an understatement.

"Yeah!" Luffy remarked smiling as well. Addy could feel the mood start to lift. "Alright! Let's hurry back to the ship and leave the island!" Luffy was bouncing up and down on one foot while holding his fist in the air.

"Yeah!" the rest of the Straw Hats remarked. Addy wondered how they were going to get Merry back on Ocean, but they would figure something out. They started walking back towards Merry who was most likely wondering about what was going on.

"Whew, I'm starving!" Luffy remarked. "Sanji! Make me some food!"

"Yeah!" he replied.

"Meat! Make meat!"

"I'll have sautéed veggies with lots of bean sprouts," Usopp stated.

"Where've I heard that before?" Sanji remarked.

Usopp chuckled. "Man these rocks are cool! These used to all be Sennernryu?"

"Yeah looks that way," Nami stated.

"Even if they are Dragonite," Sanji started to say. "There's no way to extract it like this."

"Then the whole elixir of immortality thing…" Usopp said.

"Was nothing but a dream within a dream," Nami responded. "Even if we took these coral covered fossils back with us, we'd never get an elixir from them."

"Besides there's the whole disturbing the dead thing," Addy pointed out. "That is never a good idea."

Usopp gulped, "Good point."

"Meaning those Navy bastards did all that work for nothing," Zoro added on. Addy felt her heart give a little jig. Anything that pissed off the Marines made her happy.

A screamed echoed through the air from behind them and they all turned to face the noise. In front of them stood the man who just caused them problems throughout their entire trip.

Addy unfurled her whip and rolled her eyes, "Oh come on…."

* * *

Jag: The 900 years thing is part of the main plot of this fic. Yes there is a main plot besides the One Piece one and it is probably the only area where I will diverge completely from canon depending on what happens within One Piece itself. So yes I am going to hold it over your heads for awhile.

Guest: Thanks for pointing that out. I normally read the chapters a couple of times before publishing but I have been finding myself short of time. Considering that spelling and grammar are not exactly my strong suits that can be a problem. I don't even want to look at my early chapters.


	68. Coming up Dragons Part 8

Author's Note:

Okay first off I am still on semi-hiatus but I managed to find some time to write this up. After all this is the last chapter of the arc. The next one will be the start of the straw hats in the Grand Line. As always please review and let me know what you think.

This is the remastered version.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

"How are you still alive?!" Addy exclaimed cracking her whip in the air.

"Man," Luffy remarked. "You're stubborn!"

"Yeah," purple man stated. "I very nearly drowned to death."

"A real shame that you didn't," Addy muttered.

Purple man ignored her and held out his arms. "Just look at this beautiful radiance! Isn't it marvelous?!" Addy kept her eyes locked on her target, ready if was going to make a move. "This is all Dragonite, the legendary elixir of immortality!"

"But breaking these fossilized Sennernryu won't produce anything usable," Nami pointed out. Addy was pretty sure that logic wasn't going to work on this guy.

"Yes, so I hear," he responded lowering his arms. "But there is more than enough live Dragonite here! What do you say?" He wasn't going where Addy thought he was going was he? Because that would be the dumbest thing in the universe. "A pointless fight would only be tiring. How about we make a deal to split the treasure?" He did go there. Addy growled and took a step forward wanting to turn this guy into pieces. He just crossed a line. Luffy however held his hand up and pressed it into her chest, stopping her. She whirled to face Luffy who was looking at purple man with a steely expression. Addy snapped but back down, if Luffy wanted to handle it then so be it.

"No," Luffy stated simply.

"Do you not want eternal life?!" He sounded completely flabbergasted that they weren't taking his offer. Addy only gripped her whip tighter. Immortality was more of a curse than anything. She would die before she would let any of her nakama be inflicted with it.

"Not interested," Luffy stated again.

"You lie!" he shouted at Luffy. "There's no one who's not afraid of dying! Both of us may have Devil Fruit powers, but a pirate's life is always only inches from death! There's no way you can't be afraid of dying!" He was clawing at the air as if trying to understand Luffy.

"I dunno," Zoro said crossing his arms. "He's the kind of guy who'd die smiling doing what he does."

"Oh," Purple man said. Looks like he was coming to grips with his situation. "Fine, then! You can sit there and watch as I take my Dragonite and leave!"

"No!" Apis yelled running towards him. Addy had no idea what her plan was but it wasn't a good one.

"Stop right there, girl!" Purple man shouted raising his arm in the air. He launched Wind blast towards her and Addy was ready to move though surprisingly she saw Usopp go for her as well, grabbing onto Apis and somersaulting below the attack. It left a large crack in the rock. If that hit them than both of them could have been cut clean through.

"Usopp," Apis exclaimed surprised. Addy didn't blame her.

"D-Don't be reckless," Usopp said lying flat on his back.

"Even if it's reckless, I have to protect them! This is a very important place for the Sennernryu! I'm going to protect this place forever and ever! " She poured her heart and soul out in that statement. Her voice carrying across the island. Addy smiled, those Sennernryu were in good care. Luffy nodded as well and Addy knew the two of them were on the same page.

Both of them looked towards Purple man whose eyebrow was twitching. "So you insist on defying me, huh?" he snarled. The Straw Hats remained silent, he wasn't worthy of a spoken response. "In that case, you can all die! Sickle-Sickle." He waved two fingers in front of his face in an up and down motion. Addy braced herself, prepared to move out of the way quickly if need be. The trick was to get close to him which was easier said than done. "Whirlwind!" He made an X shape in the air and a burst of X shaped Wind came towards Usopp and Apis. Usopp curled around Apis protecting her as best as he could, though he didn't need to. Before anyone could really react Luffy stepped in front, taking the brunt of the blow. Addy saw the blood spatter as Wind ripped into his clothes and skin bringing him to his knees.

Addy unfurled her whip and growled and saw Zoro go for his swords. There were of one mind. Kill this guy before he lays another hand on their Captain. Just at the moment the two of them were ready to attack she saw Luffy raise his head and get back on his feet. While she didn't see his expression she could tell from the way that he was holding himself that this fight was his. Both her and Zoro smiled and let go of their weapons, with Addy refurling her whip.

"I'll deal with him," Luffy stated clearly so that there was no question.

"As you wish Captain," Addy replied taking a step back. Zoro did the same as well, giving Luffy the space he needed to fight.

"But Luffy!" Nami objected.

"I promised him!" Luffy responded and that was all that he said before he charged at Purple Man swinging his arm around in a clockwise fashion.

"Bet you a round of drinks that Luffy finishes this in five minutes," Addy said to Zoro.

"Don't we already owe each other a round or eight?" Zoro asked raising an eyebrow.

"Oh yeah, from the Arlong thing. We never did end up doing that. Well let's make a new deal, whoever wins this pays for drinks for the last bet since it ended on a tie."

Zoro grinned at her. "I like the sound of that, though I do question your faith in Luffy." She looked at him curiously. "He is going to finish this in three minutes flat."

"If you say so. Let's start the clock now."

"What are you two talking about?" Usopp asked.

"Just how much Addy is going to owe me once Luffy's fight is over," Zoro answered.

Addy gently punched him in the shoulder, "You mean how much you are going to owe me."

"I don't think so," Purple man yelled preparing to attack. Oh right there was an actual fight going on.

"Gomu-Gomu no Pistol!" Luffy shouted throwing his fist at him.

"Whirlwind!"

Addy winced as Luffy took the hit, cutting up most of his body. Purple man back flipped away dodging Luffy's fist. Addy was worried this would happen. It was distance vs close and the only way Luffy was going to win was if he closed that gap.

Purple man back flipped onto a rock, dodging another one of Luffy's attacks. Instead Luffy struck the rock that he was standing on.

"You can't hit me, rubber man!" Purple man shouted. Luffy's fist came back to him with a snap. Purple man chuckled. "Well? Are my wind slashes sharp enough for you?" He raised his arm preparing for another attack. Luffy was cut up all over though most of them appeared to be shallow. "Now how will you dodge this?"

"This guy's pretty tough," Zoro pointed out.

"Is Luffy in trouble?" Usopp asked he sounded genuinely worried.

"Nah," Addy replied he will take care of him in the next three minutes or so.

"You mean in the next minute," Zoro countered.

"Sure if you are living in a fantasy land."

"Sickle-Sickle," Addy attention was brought back to the fight. Purple man was making all sorts of crazy movements in the air. "Wind slash! Rapid Fire!" It was almost like he was creating a tornado. Wind was swirling in the air clear to see. Wind torn through rocks, disintegrating them to dust. It cut through the ground in three straight lines, heading directly towards Luffy.

"I'm not going to run or hide!" Luffy shouted running straight for the barrage of Wind.

"Fool!" Purple man cackled. "Go ahead and get chopped up!" Addy saw that happening as Luffy took more cuts on his body. How before he reached the brunt of Wind he jumped up above it. The after effects of the attack blew over the Straw Hats but luckily it seemed to have lost its power.

"Gomu-Gomu no….." Luffy grabbed onto Purple man shoulders and stretched his neck back before whipping it forward "Bell!" There was a dong as he slammed into his opponents head. He let out a strangled cry and his glasses were smashed into pieces. "And!" Looks like Luffy wasn't done with him yet. " He stretched his arms behind him letting the guy fly through the air. "Bazooka!" Before he had even hit the ground Luffy slammed him in the back with both arms at full force sending him skyrocketing through the air.

"I win!" Luffy exclaimed. Well he certainly did that. Addy hoped they would never see that guy again. And it also seems like Zoro won the bet this time. She flashed him a grin. Looks like she would be paying.

"You did it!" Apis yelled out in joy. Some of the other villagers were coming down as well. Probably to check out all of the commotion. There were all sort of sounds of awe and surprise and wonder. Addy smiled. The Sennernryu would be safe here. Apis's grandfather also made it down to where they were and he stood beside Apis taking in everything before him.

"Do you think this place'll sink again after a little while?" Nami asked.

"Depends on how you define a little while," Addy remarked. "A long time for is a drop in the bucket for them."

"When it does, will the Sennernryu leave the island, too?" Usopp asked. He had his hands on the back of his head and was surveying the surrounding. Addy had to admit it was a beautiful sight, watching all the baby Sennernryu hatch out of their eggs. There guardians watching over them.

"And I guess that baby Sennernryu will fly off somewhere too?" Apis asked. Bokuden clapped her on the shoulder before turning to slowly face them.

"What do you say, everyone?" he asked. "Won't you have some of my special pork buns before you go?"

Nami squeaked and held up her hands, "Oh! Thank you! But that's okay!" She was waving them back and forth. "We gotta get back to our journey right away! Right?!"

"We do?" Luffy asked sitting on a rock. "I wanna eat some pork…." Nami punched him in the head causing him to fold in on himself. Addy winched. That would have hurt if he wasn't made out of rubber. "Owww!" He clutched at his head in pain.

"We'll just take the recipe," Sanji stated. Yeah because they had the supplies to make pork buns. Well Addy wasn't fully sure, they might have. Her cooking skills were only limited to raw fish.

"I see," Bokuden replied. "That's too bad. It'd only take three days to prepare them, too. I could tell you about the royal family of Lost Island in the mean…"

"We've already heard about it!" Nami said swiftly. "Anyway we have a long way to go and we must be off! Right Addy!"

"That depends on how long it takes to get Merry back in Ocean," Addy replied. Everyone turned to look at her. "Last time I checked she was beached."

"What are you talking about?" Usopp asked. "She is floating right over there." Usopp pointed in the direction Merry was and Addy took out her fold up telescope. Sure enough Merry was bobbing along on the outer edge of the island.

"How in the…. You know what never mind. That saved us time. So I guess we can leave now."

"Yeah!" Luffy shouted running towards the ship. Everyone else including the villagers followed him. Addy folded her telescope and walked towards the shore. She was 99% sure Merry was on land last time. How did she move?

" _Addy!_ " Merry called out as Addy got closer. Most of the crew was back on board. " _You would not just believe what happened. This lady with massive wings appeared from out of nowhere in front of me, did some trick with her hands and created a tornado right under me and floated me back here. She said she was going to leave you a note and placed a bottle down by the helm._ " Addy blood turned cold and she raced towards the helm. Leaning against the pole was a clear glass bottle with a cork. A tightly wrapped piece of paper was inside. Addy ripped off the cork and dumped the piece of paper in her hand. Unraveling it she sighed in relief when she read what it said.

 _We owe you. When you need to you can call on a favor._

 _May Wind always be at your back._

 _Medli of Lyra._

Addy sighed in relief and refurled the message, placing it in her bag. That would be useful later.

" _Addy?_ " Merry asked. " _Is everything okay?"_

"Yeah Merry,"she replied. "We just had a very close call there. But there is nothing to worry about."

" _You sure?_ "

"Yeah I am." Addy walked back on deck where the others were saying goodbye to Apis. She was going to miss Apis.

"Alright!" Luffy called out. "Set sail for the Grand Line!" Everyone was leaning on the railing, except for Luffy who was sitting on it, looking down at everyone. Addy stood next to Zoro and he shifted closer towards her so that their shoulders were touching. "Apis. Want to come with us?"

Apis lifted up her head towards them. "I made friends with you all," she said. "And I would like to go with you but I'm gonna stay on this island. I'm going to learn all sorts of customs from Grandpa Bokuden and protect the Sennernryu nest just as my ancestors did before me! I'm gonna wait for the baby Sennernryu to come back here someday!"

"But those baby Sennernryu won't be back for another…uhhh" Usopp stated trying to count with his fingers. "Another 500 years!"

"Hey, now!" Sanji said. "Don't be so cynical!"

Apis shook her head. "No, it's okay! I won't get to see the dragons all grown up, but I'm sure my kids' kids will get to! So I'm going to keep protecting this nest forever and ever!"

Addy chuckled. She definitely had the right mindset.

"That's crazy talk!" Usopp exclaimed.

"You guys keep doing crazy stuff too, you know!" Apis pointed out.

"We did?" Luffy asked. Each of the Straw Hats looked at him dumbstruck. Their mouths hanging open as if they couldn't believe what he just said. "Anyway set sail!"

The crew busied themselves setting up the ship. The sails unfurled and Addy went towards the helm.

" _The Grand Line huh?"_ Merry mused. " _It's going to be an adventure isn't it?"_

"You have no idea," Addy answered. As soon as Merry was set on course she left to so say goodbye with all the others.

"See ya Apis," Luffy shouted holding his thumb up.

"Apis!" Usopp yelled waving his arms sideways in the air. "Never forget about Usopp, the brave warrior of the sea!"

"Bye-bye!" Nami called out waving.

"Bye-bye! Apis called back waving both her arms high in the air. "Take care, everyone!" She and all the others slowly faded into the distance. Soon the island was disappearing as well and they were on their way back to the Grand Line.

"Is Apis really going to be okay all by herself?" Usopp asked.

"I'm sure Apis will keep the nest safe!" Nami answered. "She may be little, but she's got twice the energy and motivation of a normal person! She'll be fine!"

"You're right Nami dear," Sanji stated.

"She'll be okay!" Luffy affirmed.

"Yeah!" Zoro agreed.

"No doubt about it!" Addy said.

"Because she is our friend!" Luffy added on.

The crew dispersed at that point. Addy was back on the helm, making sure that they stayed on course. They were so close to the Grand Line it would be a disaster to get lost now. They had been smoothly sailing for a while now. Addy and Merry were chatting about nothing.

" _We got dark clouds ahead!"_ Merry said. " _Is that going to be a problem?"_

"Nami dear, Addy sweet!" Sanji yelled. "I have a report of love! I see big rain clouds ahead! There's a storm under 'em!"

"Looks like we are back on our original course," Nami said looking at the map. She was standing right outside the door so Addy could hear her and she could observe the weather. "We should be seeing the Red Line anytime now."

" _Grand Line_ ," Merry murmured. " _I would have never thought I would actually get to sail that sea_."

"I honestly thought I would never go back," Addy added in. Her grip tightened on the pole. This was going to make all their previous adventures look like children's games.

Merry laughed. " _Luffy, Zoro and Sanji are goofing around up in the crows nest."_

"Is that so?"

" _Yeah, and Usopp is finishing up one of his inventions. He should probably come up and see this. Never mind he just did._ "

Addy saw Usopp walk into view and stand beside Nami. Addy could feel the moisture increase in the air. They were getting closer to the storm. Merry was starting to rock back and forth. Nothing that Addy couldn't handle. Merry then steadied herself and Addy felt the helm almost lock, becoming incredibly hard to move. So they were trapped in a current then. This could be bad.

"Guys!" Nami yelled. "Get down here!" She and Usopp came into the lounge followed swiftly by the monster trio. Zoro and Luffy sat down at the table while Sanji loitered around the stove, ready for when Luffy demanded he make something.

"Look at this!" Nami stated slamming a map down on the table. "I'd heard the rumors about it, and it's drawn on the map on this map, too! If it is really true, than the entrance to the Grand Line, is a mountain!" Addy couldn't see what she was pointing at but she assumed it was a mountain.

"A mountain?" Luffy asked. Somehow he got ahold of a glass and was holding it between his teeth.

"We gotta crash into a mountain?" Zoro questioned skeptically. "You can't be serious?!"

"I didn't believe it myself," Nami said. "But the map has canals that lead to the mountain."

"I think we are in one," Addy said. It was a struggle to get the helm to move, even for her. Anyone else and it would be impossible.

"WHAT?!" Usopp screeched. "We are going to crash into a mountain?!"

" _That doesn't sound like a good plan,_ " Merry stated.

"No," Nami sighed. "I think we are going to go up it!"

"Neat!" Luffy remarked glass still in his mouth.

"What're you talking about?!" Zoro asked. "Even if there are canals or whatever, a ship can't climb a mountain!"

"But that's what the map says!" Nami argued. "Addy you explain it!"

"Don't look at me," Addy said still trying to get the pole do to what she wanted. It did but incredibly slowly. "I took a completely different way to get to East Blue. I have never actually been in the first part of the Grand Line."

Nami groaned and looked back at the map. "There is no questioning it. We have to go up a mountain."

"Yeah!" Sanji exclaimed. "Nami dear would never say anything that's wrong!"

"You stole that map from Buggy, right?" Zoro asked. Wait that is where they got it from? "Can we really trust it?" That was actually a very good question.

" _Addy what is going on with the rudder?! It's like its locked in place."_

Addy took a deep breath and sensed out Ocean around them. She felt its roughness and strength. The power that was beneath the surface. She growled and took her hands off the pole. There was no bloody point. "Best guess is that we are locked in a current that has trapped use and won't let us turn. Only choice we have is to ride it out.

"Can't you do anything?" both Merry and Nami asked.

"Unfortunately I am unable to change the laws of Ocean! I will get back to you when I can!"

"Sanji, Zoro, maybe you can get it to move," Nami said. Both made a move towards the helm but Addy blocked it.

"No!" she snapped. "If I can't get it to move than in Ocean's name you certainly can't! You're more likely to snap it in half than get it to move! Like I said we are trapped in an immensely strong current and the only choice we have is to see where it takes us!"

"Eh?!" Nami stated as if something dawned on her. "Addy! What did you just say?"

Addy took a shot out of her flask and felt her nerves calm down. "As I said we are trapped in an immensely strong current that…."

"That's it!" Yep a lightbulb definitely went off in her head.

"That's what?" Luffy asked.

"They really do go up the mountain!" She was back at looking at the map again.

"Are you still saying that stuff?!" Zoro asked. It dawned on Addy as well and she face palmed. She was a moron. Of course it would work that way.

"Look here!" Nami pointed out. This time Addy could see what she was pointing at, a mountain right in the middle of the Red Line. "See? The guiding light was definitely pointing to here on the Red Line…. Reverse Mountain! See these canals here." She moved her finger directly next to what looked like a river going up the mountain. So Addy was right, that was what was happening here. "If major currents from the four oceans all flow towards this mountain," she traced each one of them with her finger, "Then the four currents would go up these canals, collide at the top, and then flow into the Grand Line! Reverse Mountain is apparently a winter island, whatever that means."

Addy looked at her questioningly. "You know winter islands. Are you okay?"

"You know what winter island means but not how to get to the Grand Line?" Nami asked.

Addy shrugged. "I thought everyone knew about the seasons." Maybe she was really sheltered growing up, and thought that spring is the only season. "Anyway being a winter island means that any current that collides into the Red Line will plummet from the surface into the depths. If we miss the entrance to the canal then we will smash right into the Red Line."

"Oh, interesting," Luffy stated. "So, basically, it's a mystery mountain!"

"We will go with that," Addy replied as Luffy started laughing.

Nami looked like she was about to give up at Luffy's remark but brought her head back up. "Anyways, now that we're on this current, as long as we don't mess up with the rudder, we should be able to go straight to the summit of Reverse Mountain!"

Sanji eyes burst into hearts. "Nami dear! You're so amazing!"

"I've never heard of ships going over mountains before," Zoro said.

Addy looked at him, "I've never heard of a person using three swords before yet here you are." Zoro at least had the decently to look somewhat sheepish. "Trust me we are going to be running into a lot of things that you never heard, or seen or even thought of. This is going to be normal."

"I've heard some stuff before!" Sanji remarked. Addy rolled her eyes. She was pretty sure that they all heard stuff before.

"Stories about the mystery mountain?" Luffy asked.

"No. I heard that half of everyone who heads to the Grand Line dies before entering it. I knew getting in wouldn't be easy."

Luffy chuckled, "It won't be a problem. We have Addy!"

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Addy said rubbing the back of her head.

" _It's starting to rain,"_ Merry pointed out. " _Is that going to cause any problems?_ "

"It shouldn't," Addy replied getting some weird looks, Addy shrugged them off. "It's only rain."

"Sanji-kun! Could you get the sail?" Nami asked.

"Yes, Nami dear!" Sanji answered running immediately outside. "Luffy! Help out!"

Luffy ran outside as well leaving, Nami, Usopp, Zoro and her in the lounge. Now only to get Nami and Usopp out. Nami left as well saying she was grabbing her raincoat. That only left Usopp, who Zoro was busy glaring at. He should get the message soon.

" _Addy,"_ Merry stated. " _I see the Red Line coming up_."

"Hey!" Luffy yelled. "I see the mystery mountain!"

Addy and everyone else ran out on deck to see what Luffy was yelling about. Before them was a massive mountain made purely out of red rock, so tall that the clouds blocked the tip.

"W-What?!" Usopp exclaimed his mouth hanging wide open. "T-That's insanely huge!" Everyone else was shocked as well. Even Zoro looked stunned.

"The entrance to the Grand Line…" Nami uttered in awe.

"So that's the Red Line, huh?!" Luffy asked. Waves were crashing into the mountain and Merry was being pulled closer and closer to it. Addy smiled. This was going to be fun. The ship rumbled and rocked, knocking everyone but Addy off of their feet.

Luffy had fallen off the mast though he managed to grab onto it with both hands. He was bouncing up and down in the air. "We're getting sucked in!" Usopp and Sanji ran into the lounge to try and do something with the rudder. Apparently they didn't trust her skills.

Addy closed her eyes and felt Ocean pulse around. It was rough and stormy but she felt the strength of the current and knew it would pull them through.

"Don't touch the rudder!" Addy yelled out. "We are exactly where we need to be!"

"You sure?!" Usopp asked. Sanji immediately let go of the pole.

Addy flashed him a grin. "Absolutely positive!" He let go of the pole as well though the two of them stayed inside, probably to keep dry. The current continued to pull them closer and closer as Merry rocked in the water. Luffy was using his body as a sort of swing flowing with Merry's movements. Sure enough straight ahead of them was the entrance to the Grand Line. A gap in the mountain and they were heading straight for it. Luffy pulled himself so that he was between her and Nami. Zoro had raced off to try to find a pair of binoculars.

"Nami, Addy!" Luffy stated. "Is that the canal entrance?"

"Most likely!" Nami answered. Addy nodded. They were so close.

Zoro meanwhile had managed to find a pair of binoculars and was looking at the entrance in front of them. "This can't be for real!" He uttered. Addy walked over to him and stood by his side. "The damn ocean really is flowing up the mountain!" Addy felt it being pulled up, felt its tumultuous nature. It was shifting from the gentleness of East to the power of Grand. At the direction and speed they were going, they were going to head straight through those gates no problem. Sure enough that was exactly what occurred and the sailed past the gates towards the summit of the mountain.

"Told you!" Addy yelled. "I made sure our course was perfect. Not even a need for a slight adjustment!" Okay maybe she was bragging slightly, but it was totally worth it. Merry did not even have a scratch on her. Sanji and Usopp was dancing around the lounge, Nami looked relieved. Zoro was gripping her hip in a way that she knew was going to keep her busy tonight. Luffy was grinning and laughing. Nothing could ruin this.

"We made it!" they all shouted. They were heading up, straight to the top. It had even stopped raining.

Nami took off her jacket and was holding it up in the air, a smile clear and bright on her face. "Now it's just a straight shot to the summit!"

Zoro and her moved next to the figurehead. She was leaning against his shoulder and him on top of her head. She would normally not allow this sort of behavior, but with Zoro it felt different. Luffy ran up next to them.

"A-Awesome!" he remarked, the grin once again threating to take over his face. Everyone else made it to them as well. Sanji and Usopp still dancing.

"Curse you all!" someone shouted. Addy turned towards the sound and saw Purple guy standing on the railing.

"What are you doing here?!" Addy asked.

" _Okay this is entirely my fault. I forgot to mention he was on board during the whole we might crash into a mountain thing._ "

"Oh well doesn't matter," Addy said. He was ranting about something but Addy could not bother to care. No one else for some reasoning was acting. She unfurled her whip and lashed it towards him, causing him to fall backwards into Ocean. Problem solved. Addy should have done that from the beginning.

"Oh!" Everyone remarked placing their fists in the palm of their hands. "Good thinking!"

Nami hugged her from behind. "I knew I could count on you!"

"Way to go Addy sweet," Sanji said heart in his eye. Zoro clapped her shoulder. Yep she was going to be busy tonight. She refurled her whip and placed it back on her hip. Everyone was laughing when suddenly a white fog seemed to have surrounded them and Addy felt like she had a power surge, like she did every single time she went into water.

"We're in the clouds!" Luffy shouted jumping onto the figure head. As soon as they left the clouds behind them, Addy felt her power levels drop. Bright blue sky was above them and it sparkled. Everyone had taken various seats to watch the plummet down. Zoro, her and Nami were standing by the figurehead. Usopp was clinging to the mast for dear life and Sanji was sitting by the orange trees making sure that they were safe.

"Look!" Nami remarked. "The summit! It's the summit!" As water hit the air it turned into ice which explained the glimmering as it broke apart into ice crystals. Merry was briefly launched into the air. Wind was cold against her skin but Luffy looked like he was having the time of his life.

"Yahoo!" he yelled out. Soon gravity was pulling them back down and Merry landed back in the water with little trouble though this time heading towards the Grand Line.

'To hear the Song of the Sea,' Addy thought. 'If I am going to learn how it's going to be on that Ocean, with the future Pirate King as my captain.' She took ahold of her locket. 'Hold on a little longer Riley. You are not going to have to wait much longer.'

"This is the greatest sea in the world!" Luffy shouted. "The Grand Line! The One Piece is up ahead, somewhere! Go!"

* * *

Jag: Yeah life can be hectic sometimes. The changes Addy makes are tiny but overtime they are going to shape into something big.


	69. Swallowed Whole Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _Just as a note I am still on hiatus but managed to find some time to write this up. Don't know how good it is but hey its something. As always please review and let me know what you think._

* * *

They were plummeting down rapidly, the water whipping past them. Each moment took them closer to the Grand Line. Addy could feel the power in that sea. After spending a year in East Blue she really missed it. While it had a completely different feel than New World, Paradise still had that familiar undercurrent. This was Ocean where he would not be messed with. It would be here that they would prove to the world who they were.

Merry passed through the cloud layer again, covering up their vision.

"Whoa!" Sanji exclaimed. "This is great!"

Usopp and Nami were both laughing, taking in the wonder of the moment. Addy started as well and she could hear Merry shout out in joy as well. While Zoro made no noise the look on his face said it all. He was excited as they were. At least until he started looking around. Addy quieted down. Did he notice something?

A noise that sounded like a sad whale call suddenly came forth from seemingly nowhere. It echoed and bounced off the rocks making it seem even louder. What was a whale doing here?

"Did you just hear something?" Zoro asked. He picked up on it as well though that shouldn't be surprising considering how loud it was.

"Huh? What'd did you say?" Nami asked. They were also surrounded by rushing water so maybe the others didn't pick up on it. Addy body was able to hear past the noise of water, so the whale was loud and clear to her. Which made Zoro noticing it even more impressive.

"Don't you hear a strange sound?"

"Isn't it the wind? There must be lots of unusual landforms!"

"Actually it's a whale call," Addy announced. "I picked up on it as well. Shouldn't be a concern. Whales shouldn't bother us unless we do something stupid and attack it."

"A whale?" Zoro asked as the noise came up again.

"Yeah a whale." Addy saw a vague black shape start to appear through the clouds. Perhaps that was the whale, though if it was then this whale was huge.

"Did you say whale?!" Nami asked.

"Nami dear!" Sanji called out. "I see a mountain up ahead!"

"A mountain?!" Nami yelled back. "That can't be!"

"But it's really there!"

"I think it might be the whale!" Addy yelled starting to make her way back to the helm. Not like that would help. They were still trapped in the current and changing course would cause them to smash into the rock walls.

"Who cares?!" Luffy shouted. "Go!" Well captain's orders trumped everything else though Addy wasn't particularly inclined to run into a whale.

"After passing the Twin Capes up ahead, there should be nothing but ocean!" Nami called out. "Unless…. Addy! How large can whales in the Grand Line get!"

"Pretty damn big!" she yelled back. Sure enough as they passed through the cloud layer the shape took a more distinct form. It looked like a smooth black mountain with a rounded top. Yep definitely a whale.

"Oh, crap!" They all shouted including Merry.

"It's not a mountain!" Sanji called.

"It's a black wall!" Luffy yelled.

"It's a bloody whale!" Addy screamed finally making it to the helm. Unfortunately they were still trapped in the current and the pole was completely locked.

" _Addy!"_ Merry yelled. " _If you have a plan you better use it now because we are heading straight for it!_ "

"I know, I know," Addy hissed trying her damnedest to get the helm to move, but there was no chance of that happening. Not even an hour in to the Grand Line and already they were going to die. How wonderful.

"No its not! Addy was right! It's a whale!" Nami screamed. Well at least everyone was on the same page before they died. She went back on deck; they were screwed either way so might as well die with the rest of them. She took a shot from her flask. Though she could potentially live. That was a depressing thought.

Now that they were closer to the whale, Addy noticed that it was all scarred up around its face and it had a row of sharp pointy teeth. Not a nice whale then. It called out again and it shook everything up.

"Wh-Wh-Wh-What're we gonna do?!" Usopp yelled.

"Shall we fight?" Luffy asked. Huh Addy didn't actually think of that, though how do you actually fight a whale?

"That's probably our best option!" Addy announced. "Helm is still jammed! As long as we are trapped in this current we are going nowhere!"

"There's no way we can fight that!" Nami screamed. She might have a slight point but they might as well try.

"B-B-B-B-But, our path is blocked!" Usopp stuttered. "What're we going to do?!"

"Hold on a sec!" Sanji called. "If it looks like a wall from this close, then where are its eyes?!"

Addy gave him a sideways look. He was up in the rigging, Addy wasn't even sure when he got up there. "Um, okay. I don't know how much you guys know about whales but there eyes are on the sides of their heads! Not the front!"

"That's right!" Nami yelled. She was now standing beside her and Zoro. "It's possible that he may not have noticed us!"

"Which would be helpful if we could change course!" Addy pointed out. "Right now it doesn't matter if he notices us or not we are still going to crash into him!"

"Addy can't you do anything?!" Nami asked her gripping her shoulders. "I thought you were the best helmsman!"

"I never said that!"

"Hey!" Zoro shouted. "We can get through on the left!" Addy looked to where Zoro was pointing and sure enough there was a gap. Maybe just maybe.

She rushed back to the pole, just as Luffy was announcing that he had an idea, and grabbed onto it, Zoro close on her heels. Probably to offer moral support because he would be unable to do anything else. Maybe she could pull this off.

"Merry I am going to try something insane," Addy said in her native tongue.

" _Right now we could do with a little insane_ ," Merry answered back.

Addy took a deep breath. She had never actually done this before but there was a first time for everything. In her native tongue she spoke these words, "Merry, ship of the future king, I give you the ability to sail through waters unhindered. That no wave can take you, and no current can stop you. Through the power in me given by my father, Ocean, I give you this gift." Addy felt as Merry surged with power, the very air around them seem to crackle with energy. Every board vibrate and sparkled silver. In a moment it settled and calmed though Addy could still feel it in the air. Hoping to Ocean that it worked she took the pole and pushed it to port. Instead of being locked it moved freely and she felt Merry move across Ocean. She started laughing and tears formed in the corner of her eyes, she turned towards Zoro. He looked at her amazed and brought his hand to her chin and pulled his face close so that there foreheads were resting against each other. Addy felt her breath quicken and her heart beat go a million miles, when suddenly there was an explosion and Addy felt Merry shift right back towards the whale.

"Cannon?!" Both her and Zoro shouted. She heard the others shout it as well. Addy tried to change course again but it was too late. The shockwaves caused them to run straight smack into the whale and Addy felt something crack. Luckily the explosion managed to slow them down so they weren't completely obliterated but still, she had it.

" _OWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW_!" Merry screamed. " _My figurehead broke!"_

Both Addy and Zoro ran out on deck to survey the damage. Sure enough the figurehead's head was completely broken off and flying through the air.

"What happened?" Addy asked.

" _Luffy went down to fire the cannon in order to slow us down_ ," Merry stated. " _It wasn't a completely bad plan._ " Addy sighed and took a shot out of her flask. It wasn't actually a bad plan, just wasn't needed considering she had actually managed to change their course. " _Oh and thanks for the blessing. I didn't know you could do that on the fly._ "

"Neither did I," Addy grumbled as the head landed on deck with a thump. Everyone else was still in a state of shock. Addy was sure she would be too if not for the alcohol flowing through her.

She head Luffy scream, "My special seat!"

Addy heard Zoro gulp and felt as he grabbed her wrist and pull her back towards the helm. "Let's get out of here before it's too late!" he shouted pushing her back into the pole. Right, they still had the whale problem. Addy grabbed the pole and maneuvered them around the whale before it decided to eat them. With the blessing Merry was even fast than before, cutting through the waves like nothing.

"What the heck is going on?!" Usopp shouted coming into the room.

"Did he not notice the cannon attack because his body's too big?!" Sanji asked also coming in. "Or is he just slow?!"

"Who knows?!" Zoro responded. "Anyway let's get out of here now!"

"Someone wake up Nami so she can actually tell us where we are going," Addy said. "Otherwise we could be wandering around for days." The whale called out again and Addy hoped it was an excuse me rather than a declaration that he was going to eat them. It shook Merry up, Addy could feel every board vibrate. She closed to her ears to the sound but the others weren't so lucky. Judging by the way they gripped their ears they were in a lot of pain. Since Addy was unaffected she was able to keep sailing past. The rumbling stopped and Addy reopened her ears. Looks like everything is golden.

"You!" Luffy shouted. Addy winced. This wasn't good. Everyone else ran out to see what Luffy was up to. "What the hell did you do to my special seat?!"

"Please tell me he didn't just do something stupid?" Addy asked.

" _He just punched the whale in the eye_ ," Merry answered. Addy slammed her head into the steering pole and took a shot from her flask. Sometimes her captain was a complete and utter moron.

"Dumbass!" they all yelled out simultaneously.

" _And now the whale is looking at us_ ," Merry pointed out.

"How was that?!" Luffy shouted. "Bring it on, you bastard!"

"Shut up already, you idiot!" she heard Usopp and Zoro shout. She heard the whale roar again though not as loudly as before. Instead she felt Merry being pulled and no matter what she did she couldn't fight it. Was the blessing wearing off already? She thought she made it permanent.

" _It's the whale,"_ Merry shouted. " _It's sucking us in_!" Addy face palmed. She was a moron, she only gave the blessing against Ocean forces, not sealife. If there was going to be a next time she would make sure to do both. " _Can't you do something?!"_

"One blessing per ship I am afraid," Addy replied walking on deck and taking a shot from her flask. She watched as water rushed down the whale's gullet. This wasn't going to end well. Everyone else was screaming and panicking trying to gain footing, when out of the corner of her eye she saw something that made her blood run cold.

"CAPTAIN!" she shouted as he fell overboard. Ignoring everything else she ran towards where he fell, ready to dive in herself. However before he hit the water, he stretched and managed to grab ahold of one of the whales teeth, launching himself towards another one. He then jumped on top of the whale and disappeared from view. Addy breathed a sigh of relief. He might have a chance of surviving unlike the rest of them. Addy did think she saw a lighthouse. Luffy might be able to make it.

The rest of them were trapped in swirling vortex of water, spiraling down into the whale's stomach. The spiraling suddenly stopped and they were through into darkness. Stupid whale must have closed its mouth. Now they were all going to die in blackness. Merry was still moving, which was good Addy guessed. Everyone else was stumbling around trying to find each other She groped around to see if she could find someone, only for some to bump into her and grab on, wrapping their arms directly over her breasts and squeezing tightly.

"Sanji is that you?" she asked tapping the persons arm.

"It is I Addy sweet. How lucky am I to find you!" he gushed. Addy rolled her eyes but the point was defeated in the darkness.

"Yeah, okay I am happy to find you too. But if you don't move your arms lower I am going to break your nose. Understand?" He proceeded to wrap his arms underneath her chest. Addy sighed but accepted it. He was a teenage boy after all. Besides if they were going to die might as well be in the arms of someone she cares about.

A bright light appeared before them and Addy had to shield her eyes. As Merry approached the light, Addy thought she could see more of her surroundings. Strangely she thought she saw metal and a doorway? Passing through it they came to a place with bright blue skies and a few clouds. There also appeared to be birds in the sky. The liquid surrounding them was an interesting shade of green. Merry came to a gentle stop and she bobbed along, though for some reasons she was giggling. It allowed all the Straw Hats to separate themselves, Nami and Usopp managed to find Zoro and Addy untangled herself from Sanji's grip. She took a few steps and just stared. This wasn't what she was expecting.

In front of them was a small island and on that island was a nice yellow house with a lot of circular windows. There was also beech chair, a palm tree, and even a clothing line. Addy took a shot.

"What do you think…..?" Nami asked.

"What do I think….?" Zoro responded crossing his arms. "How should I think?"

"H-H-H-H-How…" Usopp exclaimed his mouth was hanging wide open.

"I was sure we were swallowed by the whale," Sanji stated.

"Well I am pretty sure we are not dead," Addy said. "Unless this is purgatory and we are about to be judged for our actions."

"Is this a dream?" Usopp asked.

"That could be possible as well."

"Yeah, it's probably a dream," Zoro added in.

"Then, what're the island and house doing there?" Nami asked.

"They must be illusions."

Suddenly a plume of liquid rose up in front of them and a massive pink squid appeared right in front of Merry causing Merry to bob in the water.

"Then this is…" Nami started to say.

"A Great King Squid!" Nami and Usopp yelled running away from the thing. Addy, Zoro and Sanji instead walked towards it. Zoro and Addy going for their weapons. She stared into its bright green eyes, its pupils little more than dots. The three of them took there stances ready to attack if it so much as moved when equally out of nowhere three spears appeared and lodged themselves in the squids forehead. Its head fell back into the liquid causing another plume of water as it splashed down. Once the squid was flat, Addy saw that the spears came from inside the house, its double doors now wide open. The three of them did not even relax, preparing themselves for whatever might walk out that doorway.

"Looks like there's at least someone there," Zoro stated.

"I hope it's really a person," Sanji said.

"Yeah, I am not in the mood to deal with the supernatural," Addy stated grasping her whip tighter.

"I've had enough," Nami whimpered. "I wanna go home."

"Luffy went somewhere, too," Usopp sniveled. "What's gonna happen to us?"

"Come to think of it, where's Luffy?"

"Who knows," Addy answered. "We can't exactly afford to be worried about it. He can handle himself." At least Addy hoped that he could.

"Sh-Sh-Sh-Shall we fire the cannon at that island?!" Usopp stuttered pointing towards the island. Zoro had relaxed somewhat crossing his arms and glaring at the island. Her and Sanji were still tense however.

"No, hold on a sec," Sanji ordered. "Someone's coming out."

Out of the doorway stepped a very strange looking man. He was stocky and somewhat muscular, with a bald head and what looked like yellow flower petal like things, that were purple near the bottom sprouting from his head. His white beard split in two straight down the middle. His fashion choices also left something to be desired. Pink shirts with a yellow and green stripe as well as purple circles and bluish grey shorts don't look good on anyone, even with glasses. For some reason though he looked familiar.

"Ah?" Sanji remarked. "It's a flower!"

"A flower?" Zoro asked.

"Oh, never mind. It's a person."

"What is he?" Usopp wondered. Addy tried racking her head for a name. She knew she had seen him somewhere before.

"That old man killed a Great King Squid with a single hit," Nami pointed out.

"Was he just fishing or did he do it to save us?" Sanji questioned. They all entered a staring contest with this guy wondering what he was going to do next. The atmosphere was tense, like one wrong move and blood would be spilt. Sanji was taking the brunt of it which wasn't a good thing. Sanji was a lot of things but intimidating wasn't one of them. That was more Zoro's department.

The mood was broken as the man sat down in the lawn chair and took out a newspaper.

"Say something, you jerk!" Sanji yelled at him.

He turned to look at them unblinking.

"I-If you wanna fight, we'll fight, you bastard!" Usopp shouted at him from the doorway of the lounge. "We've got cannons!" The guy gave the dead stare again and the tension rose up. It was so thick that it was almost palpable.

"You'd better not, or someone will die," he spoke his voice grave and gravely. It scared Nami and Usopp into a stupor. They were blue in the face and clinging onto each other.

"Oh?" Sanji said looking nervous. "Just who're you saying will die?"

"Me."

"You?!" Sanji yelled at him again. "Why, you…"

Zoro clapped him on the shoulder. "Well, calm down," he stated.

"He's mocking us. That bastard." Zoro pushed Sanji back and stepped forward. Enough was enough. The first mate was taking control.

"Hey, old man." Brilliant start Zoro. A quality there. "Tell us where we are and who you are." The death stare started up again and once again Addy felt the area fill with dread. How he was able to do that Addy had no clue but it was useful. It made her nervous about attacking him.

"When asking someone a question, isn't it proper to give your name first?" the man said.

Zoro looked a little taken aback but recovered. "Hm? Yeah, good point. Sorry. My name is Roronoa…."

"My name is Crocus," Crocus interrupted. Addy never heard that name before in her life but he definitely was familiar. "I'm the lighthouse keeper of the Twin Capes. I'm 71 years old and a Gemini. My blood type is AB."

Zoro gripped his white sword about to take it out of its sheathe. He was trembling and Addy could see him froth with rage as he turned to face them. "Can I cut him?!" he asked. Both Sanji and her placed a hand on him to keep him calm.

"Now, calm down," Sanji said.

"You're asking where we are?" Crocus asked. "How dare you run your mouth when you barge into my private resort? Does it look like we're in a rat's belly?"

"S-So we were eaten by a whale after all…" Usopp stuttered. "But is this really inside a whale's stomach?"

"Wait a second!" Nami exclaimed placing her hands on her cheeks. "What's gonna happen to us?! I don't wanna be digested!"

Once again the tension rose in the area. It was enough to drive Addy insane.

"Would you cut that out?!" They all called out.

"Haven't you guys heard of the repeating gag?" Crocus asked them.

"That was a gag?!"

"The exit is over there." He pointed to two large metal doors to the right of them.

"We can get out?!"

"Hold on a sec!" Nami exclaimed. "Why's there an exit in a whale's belly?! Why's the door in the sky?!"

"Do you really want to question it?" Addy asked. "I would much rather leave." Merry giggling was starting to grate on Addy's nerves. This entire situation was and the alcohol wasn't helping. She was two steps away from grabbing Zoro and dragging him down to the woman's room.

"Wait," Usopp said. "Look at it carefully. This sky… Those seagulls…. They're all painted! It's all a painting inside of the whale's stomach!"

Now that Addy was actually paying attention to it, Usopp was right. It was all fake. Addy wasn't exactly sure why considering the effort that must have gone into doing it.

"Call it a doctor's playful mind," Crocus said. He was a doctor?

"You bastard!" Usopp yelled at him, eyes pooping out of his skull. Zoro was holding him back. "What the hell are you doing here?!"

"That's enough," Zoro said. "Leave him alone."

"Agreed," Sanji said.

"Addy! Nami!" Zoro ordered. "There's an exit, so let's get out of here already." Suddenly everything started rumbling and everyone besides Addy lost their footing. What was the whale doing now? The liquid they were floating on churned and sloshed.

"What's going on?!" Sanji asked.

"It's started," Crocus stated.

"Look," Nami yelled pointing towards the house. "That's not an island! It's a ship. On top of that, it's made of iron!"

"Of course!" Usopp stated. "It's because this sea is gastric acid!"

"I guess that means that wooden ships would melt if they stayed here long," Sanji pointed out.

"All the more reason for us to leave," Addy added in going towards the helm. It also sort of explained Merry's giggling. Perhaps the stuff was ticklish.

"Hey!" Usopp shouted. "What's started?! Tell us?!"

"This whale has…" Crocus started to say. "Laboon has started hitting his head against the Red Line."

"What?!" Zoro, Sanji, and Addy exclaimed. Great not only were they trapped in a whale, but an insane whale at that.

"Come to think of it," Nami stated. "This whale had terrible scars on his forehead. He was also howling at the sky."

"What does that mean?" Usopp asked.

"He's suffering!"

"I see!" Well Addy didn't. "So that's what the geezer is trying to do!" Keep the whale alive? I mean that's what she assumed he would be doing. The question was why.

"Likely… He's probably trying to kill the whale from inside his body!"

"What a vicious way to kill it!"

"Where did you two come up with that conclusion?" Addy asked. "I mean there are a lot easier methods to killing whales than this."

"Well what do you think is happening?" Nami asked.

Addy shrugged her shoulders. "Personally I don't really care. I just want to get out before Merry dissolves."

"Agreed," Zoro uttered. "It's time to hurry up and get out. If we take our time here, we'll be digested."

"We have nothing to say about his whale hunting," Sanji pointed out. If that was what he was doing. "Nor are we under any obligation to save the whale. Let's get out of here."

The waves continued to surge, Addy wished that the whale would calm down for a moment. She took the helm and tried to navigate towards the doors but the liquid did not behave like Ocean making it exceedingly difficult. Merry was also an incoherent mess which did not help things.

"Ahhhh! Dammit!" Usopp shouted. "With the waves surging like this, I don't even know if we can reach the doors!"

"I'm trying!" Addy remarked. "But I am sort of sailing blind here!"

"Let's leave quickly!" Nami said. "I'm worried about Luffy." Addy was as well. She hoped he made it to land.

"He's outside!" Zoro shouted. "I saw him fly out of the mouth!"

"That old man jumped in!" Wait what? Why would he do that? This place was basically a pit of acid.

"Hey!" Usopp yelled. "The geezer came out!" The liquid had also calmed down some allowing for Addy to move towards the doors with Nami's guidance. Now all they had to do was figure out how to get the doors open. She thought she heard something burst open and screaming. A very familiar screaming.

"Well at least Captain is okay," Addy sighed going back out and standing beside Zoro.

"Hey!" Luffy shouted. "So everyone's okay?" He was gripping onto his hat. "In any case, help me!" He splashed into the acid below. Addy winched wondering how it would react with rubber. Regardless she jumped right in to save him. Merry was right, the stuff was ticklish but there was apparently enough water concentrated to allow her to breath though it burned. She grabbed onto Luffy who was slowing sinking to the bottom. She noticed all the wreckage and other bodies that the whale had swallowed up but surging upwards landing back on Merry's dock.

The liquid had also calmed down meaning that the whale was no longer engaged in its suicidal task. For some reason the other two people who came flying out with Luffy also were on board. A guy and a girl that looked like they dressed in the dark and were also colorblind. Luffy sat beside the broken figurehead while Sanji was kneeling next to the girl, a little heart floating above him. The rest of them were standing around rather aloof.

"Now," Zoro stated. "We did save you guys for the time being, but who are you?" Instead of answering they started whispering to themselves, though it wasn't like they couldn't hear them. Addy wasn't that deaf. Why didn't they throw them back in? It would probably save them loads of trouble in the long run.

"Mr. 9. They're pirates," the girl with the ridiculously long blue hair and blue striped tank top whispered to her companion.

"I-I know, Miss Wednesday," Mr. 9 spoke. He had a gold crown on his head and had on a weird green jacket with white and orange ruffles. These people were strange. "B-But if we talk to them, they should understand…. Perhaps…"

"You thugs're still around?!" Crocus yelled. They all turned to look at him. He was standing on a platform right by the exit. "Don't make me say this yet again! I won't let you lay a finger on Laboon as long as I'm alive!"

"He's back." Usopp pointed out.

"Who's that pops?" Luffy asked.

Miss Wednesday started giggling and she stood up, "Even if you say so, we can't leave."

"Taking down this whale is our mission," Mr. 9 stated. "We won't let you interfere with our whale hunting this time!" They raised there silver hand cannons towards the wall of the stomach. Addy heard the click as they turned off the safety. "We'll open an air vent in his stomach! Let's go, baby!"

"Roger!"

They fired their weapons and launched two cannon balls towards the painted sky. Crocus leapt up and caught them in midair taking the blast. This guy was really dedicated to protecting this whale.

"That pops jumped straight into the bullets!" Usopp exclaimed.

"Could it be that he protected the whale?!" Sanji remarked.

Miss Wednesday started laughing. Addy was about to side with Crocus because of how annoying her laugh was. "Stop this pointless resistance!" she yelled.

"If you want to protect the whale that badly, go right ahead!" Mr. 9 stated. "We'll turn it into food for our town." Now they were both laughing and Addy wondered why they were still here.

"What's going on?" Nami asked.

"I don't know anymore," Addy sighed taking a shot from her flask. The two morons were still laughing until apparently even Luffy got fed up and punched them both in the sides of their heads knocking the two of them together. They collapsed onto the deck. Whoever they were they weren't that strong.

"I just felt like hitting them," Luffy announced a frown on his face. At that point Crocus had swum back to his boat island. It was then that Luffy noticed it as well.

"Awesome!" he announced stretching his arm towards the house grabbing onto it and flinging himself onto the island. Addy rolled her eyes and brought Merry right up next to the island where everyone got off, including Addy as well as tossing the two intruders out. Luffy meanwhile was halfway climbing up a tree.

"I thank you for saving me… but why?" Crocus asked.

"I wasn't trying to save you," Luffy told him. "I just didn't like them for some reason." Luffy not liking someone for no reason was strange. Before now Addy thought it wasn't possible.

Nami finished tying the two of them up and stood up from her work. "Say who are these guys?" she asked. Usopp meanwhile was trying to pull Luffy off of the tree. "What're you doing inside this whale?"

"They're thugs from a nearby town," Crocus answered. "They're after the whale meat! If they capture Laboon, it can feed the townspeople for at least 2-3 years."

"Laboon?" Nami asked. Addy was also intrigued. Whales did not usually have names.

"It's the name of this whale," Crocus responded.

"Yeah, we figured that out," Addy said. "But why does it have a name?"

"It's the world's largest whale, called the island whale…" Crocus did not appear to hear her and Addy had a bad feeling that it was about to be story time. Taking a shot from her flask she mentally prepared herself. At least this time she was a little bit curious. "Which only live in West Blue. I won't let them have him as food. There's a reason he keeps hitting himself on the Red Line and howling towards Reverse Mountain. Yeah. He's a whale with a human heart. And he's been devotedly waiting for a certain pirate group for 50 long years."

* * *

Jag: Him being alive is one of the things you just sort of have to roll with despite the facts it makes no real sense. There is a lot of that and most of it shows up in filler arcs. The rudder not being broke did change some things but not in the immediate effect. It will have some long term consequences but those won't be obvious for awhile.


	70. Swallowed Whole Part 2

Author's Note: So I managed another update. Expect them to be more sporadic as we head into the Whiskey Peak arc because some of that arc is going to be really plot heavy and also requires somewhat of an explanation. As always please review and let me know what you think.

* * *

And suddenly Addy actually found herself interested. This whale was waiting for another pirate crew for 50 years? They were probably all dead by now, nothing more than skeletons. Pirates did not usually live a long time as she was well aware of. Her chest tightened slightly as she looked at her nakama. Not that she would have to go through that. Once Luffy became King, then she could go. And if it happened before then so be it.

"I'll tell you Laboon's story," Crocus muttered. "One day while I was on duty as the lighthouse keeper as usual, some good natured pirates came down Reverse Mountain and entered the Grand Line. And a small whale came in as well, as if following them. That was Laboon. The Island Whale lives only in the West Blue, and it's the world's largest whale. The Pirates had been traveling with Laboon all that time, but they left him in the West Blue since the Grand Line is extremely dangerous. Although they thought they did, he followed them. Island Whales usually travel together as a group, but I suspect Laboon felt that he was a member of that pirate group. Since their ship had broken down, they stayed at the cape for several months. So we became quite good friends. Because of that, on the day of their departure they left Laboon in my care. To take care of him for a few years. The Grand Line was too dangerous of a place for a baby whale. They were supposed to travel the world and then come back. That was 50 long years ago."

"50 years," Zoro remarked.

"Laboon has been waiting for those guys for 50 years?" Usopp asked surprised.

"Is that why he continues to howl at the wall, hitting himself on it?" Nami questioned.

"Yeah," Crocus mumbled before going silent once again. It was rather sad. The whale still had hope that they would return. Laboon had more loyalty than most humans she knew.

" _ADDY!_ " Merry yelled out in between fits of giggling. "Please get me out of here! It's getting unbearable!"

"We need to leave now!" Addy announced jumping back on board. The rest stared at her. "Merry isn't going to last much longer!" That got everyone's attention quickly as they soon got on board. They even brought the two idiots along. Addy would convince Luffy to dump them the next chance they got.

"I'll guide you out," Crocus said still sitting on his lawn chair. The island ship moved a little ahead of Merry and Addy followed its lead, heading out towards the door which opened as they got closer. Crocus must have had a lever or a button or something close by him. Sailing through Addy noticed a shift in the chemical balance; it was waterier than before and definitely bluer. Also unlike the previous canal this one was well lite so they weren't running around and bumping into each other. Addy could see the metal that lined the walls. If she didn't know any better she would say that there was no way she was inside a whale. Once she got them into the canal, the current was doing the rest allowing her to stand on the deck with everyone else.

"This is an amazing canal," Zoro pointed out, Addy stood right next to him keeping an eye on their surroundings. They were all standing near the front of Merry, who had ceased giggling, except for Luffy who was sitting on the broken figure head. Usopp would have to fix that at some point.

"It is indeed," she mumbled.

"I'm surprised that he's still alive, having a hole like this inside his body."

"Is this also your playful mind?" Sanji asked Crocus.

"A doctor's playful mind," Crocus uttered.

"Doctor?" Usopp asked.

"I may not look one, but I'm a doctor. I also ran a clinic on the cape a long time ago. It was just for a few years, but I was also a ship's doctor." A ship's doctor? Addy wondered who for.

"Really?" Luffy asked. "Then be our ship's doctor!" That wasn't a bad idea. They did need one and soon. They would not make it far on the Grand Line without one.

"Don't be ridiculous," Crocus scoffed. "I no longer have the energy to do reckless things like you guys do." He got up from his chair and started climbing up a ladder on the side of the passageway. They had stopped right in front of a large metal door. He must be really devoted to Laboon to do all this for him.

"A doctor huh?" Sanji mused. "That's why the inside of the whale's body is like this."

"Then these are from treatment," Nami pointed out.

"That's right." Crocus stated now having reached the top of the ladder. "When the whale is this big, it's impossible to treat it from outside. I'm gonna open the doors." He turned this large wheel and Addy could hear gears turning and machines working. The doors slowly opened and Merry sailed through back into open Ocean.

"There it is!" Luffy yelled. "The real sky!" It was a relief to see though Addy was happier to be back on Ocean. Now they would make their way on to the Grand Line. Also the two idiots had gotten up. Addy hoped they would just jump overboard so they wouldn't have to bother with them. Addy turned Merry so that they were facing Laboon before going back on deck. She had a feeling they would stick around for a little bit. They were all standing around the broken figure head, with Luffy sitting on top of it.

"But 50 years?" Usopp remarked. "Those pirates sure are making him wait a long time."

"Idiot," Sanji stated. "This is the Grand Line. They're dead. No matter how long he waits, they won't come back."

"Yeah, it's true that 50 years ago the Grand Line was an uncharted sea more terrible and chaotic than it is now," Nami pointed out.

"Why are you talking so hopeless?!" Usopp asked. "You don't know that for sure yet!"

"It's a pretty good guess," Addy said.

"They might come back! It's a very touching story! A whale continues to believe in the promise his friends made. Right, pops?"

"Yeah… But reality is cruel," Crocus stated. "I confirmed it using reliable information. They ran away from the Grand Line." How? In order to actually leave the Grand Line you have to make it to the end, use one of the underwater currents, which only her kind or a coated ship use, or go through the Calm Belt which means they are most likely dead.

"Can't be," Usopp uttered. "Don't tell me… they left without him?!"

"Ran away from the Grand Line…" Nami wondered. "Does that mean they went through the Calm Belt alive?"

"The chances of that happening are slim to none," Addy pointed out.

"Even if they are alive," Crocus stated. "They'll probably never come back here. Seasons. Weather. Current. Wind direction. They are all random. Common sense is useless in the Grand Line. The terror of the Grand Line takes over weak minds in an instant."

"So having weak minds, they ran away from this sea," Sanji said. "Without keeping their promise in order to save their asses."

"They abandoned this whale?!" Usopp stated astonished and angry. "When he's been waiting for 50 years?! That's cruel!"

"If you know that, why haven't you told him?" Nami asked. "That whale can understand what people say, right?"

"I did tell him…. Everything," Crocus said softly. "It's since then that he started howling at Reverse Mountain and that he started slamming his body against the Red Line. It's as if he's insisting that they'll come back from the other side of that wall any time now."

Sanji blew out a puff of smoke "What a whale."

"When there's no point in waiting…" Usopp murmured.

"He refuses my words because if he accepts them," Crocus stated. "It means that there is no point in waiting. He's afraid of that more than anything. He's from West Blue. There's no way of going back there now. That's why those pirates he came here with are his only buddies and hope." Merry was being unusually quiet and Addy patted the railing. They would never abandon Merry.

"But you know, it's true that he is a poor whale," Sanji said. "But in a way you were also betrayed, right? Haven't you done enough for him already?"

"Look at the scars on his forehead! If he continues to hit his head hard like that, he'll die without a doubt. It's been a strange relationship, but I've been with him for 50 long years. I can't just stand by and watch him die now."

" _Ouch_!" Merry exclaimed. Before Addy could blink she heard Luffy yell and run across the deck carrying the main mast of the ship, crows nest and all. Addy was grateful she stored her telescope away. They all turned to look at him.

"What is that idiot doing now?" Sanji asked.

"When we looked away for a second…" Zoro grumbled. Luffy was somehow running up the side of Laboon, screaming the entire time.

"Is he pretending he's mountain climbing or something?" Sanji asked.

"I'm more concerned about his plans for our mast," Addy remarked. "Rowing across the Grand Line does not seem like a good idea."

"Gomu-Gomu no Flower Arrangement!" Luffy shouted slamming the mast into Laboon. Addy could see blood spurt out. What in Ocean's name was he doing? Was he mercy killing the whale?

"Isn't that the mast?" Zoro asked.

"Yep," Sanji said. "It's from our ship."

"You only figured that out now?" Addy stated. "I'm mean I even pointed it out, or are you living in denial."

" _Why does he have to be my Captain_ ," Merry whimpered.

"I am wondering the same thing," Addy replied.

"Hey!" Usopp yelled. "Don't break the ship!"

Laboon slammed into Ocean causing a wave to crash over Merry. He was shaking in the water and roaring causing massive waves.

"What the hell are you doing?!" They all yelled at Luffy. Laboon was flinging itself back and forth trying to shake Luffy off. When that didn't work Laboon jumped up into the air and crashed head first into the ground right by the lighthouse.

"Wha?!" Crocus exclaimed. "Hey, kid!"

"Don't worry," Nami remarked. "He doesn't die even when he 's crushed!"

"I think he's more concerned about Laboon than Captain," Addy stated. Laboon continued roaring, twisting and turning in Ocean. He smashed his head back into the land though Luffy jumped out of the way. Was he really fighting the whale? Luffy was slammed back into the ground by Laboon's tail, though he quickly turned around and punched Laboon in the eye, the backlash knocking Luffy into the lighthouse.

"What does he think he's doing?" Usopp asked.

"Well from the looks of it, he appears to be fighting a whale," Addy stated.

"I mean why?!" Luffy kicked the whale in the nose and the whale threw him back at the lighthouse. Hopefully Crocus wasn't too close to that lighthouse. Luffy fell to the ground, apparently collapsed.

"Luffy!" Zoro yelled. "What the hell are you trying to do?!" Zoro turned to Addy. "And don't say trying to fight a whale!"

"Okay, trying to defeat a whale then," Addy remarked. Zoro shook his head at her.

Laboon prepared to charge one again at Luffy. However, before he could land another blow Luffy stated, "It's a draw!" Laboon stopped closed his mouth and just looked at Luffy. Luffy stood up and placed his straw hat back on his head. "I'm strong, aren't I? You wanna defeat me, don't you?! Our fight isn't over yet! So we have to fight again. Your buddies're dead, but I'm your rival forever. We definitely have to fight again in order to decide who is stronger." Everyone started smiling, even Addy. She could picture it perfectly. Pirate King as his first act gets defeated by a whale, or defeats a whale. Either one would be golden. "After going around the Grand Line, we'll come back to see you again. When I come back, let's fight again!" Laboon started tearing up and crying. He made another whale call though this one much more pleasant.

"Now for something else," Luffy uttered stretching back to the ship, thankfully bringing the mast with him. Putting it on deck the Straw Hats just watched as Luffy ran down below decks only to come back up carrying three paint cans in one hand and a giant brush in his mouth. She wasn't even sure why they had that. Stretching back towards the lighthouse and Laboon, he took the brush and started painting something on Laboon. Addy winced. Whatever it was, it wasn't going to be pretty. And it turns out it wasn't. It was Luffy attempt at their pirate mark. Thank Ocean they had Usopp.

"Hmmmm," Luffy uttered. "This is good." Luffy himself was covered with white and yellow paint. Addy sort did not want to know the state of Laboon. "This is the symbol of our promise to fight again. Until we come back, don't remove that mark by hitting your head. Got that?!" Laboon made a sound of acknowledgement. "All right!"

Usopp meanwhile had started repairing Merry, much too Merry's gratitude. Addy was just leaning against the railing next to Zoro quietly chatting with him. Or its more like she talked and he occasionally made a sound like he was listening. Though he could just be asleep with his eyes open.

"Hm," Usopp said stopping in the middle of the deck. He was carrying a couple planks of wood. "Where're those guys?"

"Those guys?" Nami asked. "Oh, those two weird people?"

"Oh they freed themselves forever ago," Addy said. "Nothing to worry about. I think they are floating in Ocean somewhere over there." Addy waved in their vague direction. Zoro lifted an eyebrow towards her. Guess he was awake. "Come on, those guys were about as much of a threat as a barnacle. Usopp could probably defeat them." Luffy meanwhile had gotten back on board and was looking at something he found on the ground. Addy glanced towards him. Looks like Nami dropped her log pose, though it didn't look like any log pose Addy had ever seen. Where were the other two dials? Nami was on shore walking around while she had the chance. Sanji was busy making that elephant tuna now that they were finally in the Grand Line. Addy went to shore as well while Zoro helped Usopp with the mast. That would need to be repaired before they went anywhere.

Nami was sitting down at a table overlooking a map and holding that weird device she always carried. Addy wondered what it did but she didn't ask. Probably some complicated weather device.

"Okay then!" Nami said. "I'm finally drawing up the plans for the Grand Line journey now!" Nami then let out a screech and Addy went running towards her heart in her throat.

"Nami!" Addy exclaimed. "What's wrong?!" Laboon splashed the water with his tail, in worry as well Addy assumed.

"What's the matter, Nami dear?!" Sanji asked carrying several plates of the tuna. Addy licked her lips. She was looking forward to this. He was carrying one in both hands, on top of his head, and on one leg. He managed to hop all the way from his kitchen on one foot, which was actually insanely impressive. "If it's the food you're worried about, it's ready!" Usopp also came on shore excited about food.

"Th-The compass is broken!" Nami exclaimed. "It doesn't point in any direction!" Addy looked down at the odd device to see an arrow spinning around in a circle. The compass? What's a compass? "What do you mean you don't know what a compass is?!" Nami shouted at her. "It's only the most crucial navigation device! Without it we are screwed!"

"Don't you mean the log pose?" Addy asked staring at Nami oddly, "Because Captain…"

"What is a log pose?!"

Addy stared at her absolutely dumbfounded. "It's how you know where the next island is…..? You follow the arrow. I mean are you okay? You didn't hit your head or anything?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about! Did you hit your head?!"

"Allow me to step in," Crocus said. "It shouldn't be surprising that you don't know what a compass is. I am surprised you know what a log pose is considering that your mother hasn't needed one for years."

"She lets David keep one around. Letting him navigate takes the burden off her shoulders and allows her to do other things," Addy replied. There was a moment before she whirled towards him. "You know my mother?!" It was then that it hit her where she recognized him from. Sarabi had a picture of him next to Roger in her room. He was Roger's doctor.

"Figure it out?" Crocus said. Addy could only gape at him. "Don't worry you won't be recognized. Your mother hasn't been around these parts in a while and you are still too much of a baby to connect back to your other relatives. What are you 18?"

"20," Addy hissed. "Now what is this compass thing?"

"In any other sea, it always points north."

"That's insane! Your telling me that in other seas the magnetic fields are stable and not island dependent?!"

"What?" Nami said staring at Addy eyes wide.

Addy sighed and wracked her brain for the explanation that David gave her. "Okay so, the islands in the Grand Line contain a lot of magnetic materials. Because of that, they cause abnormalities all throughout the Grand Line. Furthermore, currents and winds are not consistent so navigating becomes sort of nightmarish."

"It's true that if we don't have a way of knowing our direction, it's hopeless. But why didn't you say anything?"

"I thought you knew. I just learned about the compass thing now."

"Hey!" Usopp stated. "That's bad! Are we gonna be okay?!"

Luffy meanwhile was munching away at the fish when Nami yelled at him to shut up. Not in those exact words but that was her point.

"The nose of the Bluefin Elephant Tuna tastes good!" Luffy announced.

"Anyway," Nami rolled her eyes. "Continue Addy."

"So in order to navigate you need a thing called a log pose. It essentially records magnetism."

"Is it a strange looking compass?" Luffy asked.

Addy shrugged. "Considering I didn't know what a compass looked like until a few minutes ago, I can't say. It's essentially a bracelet with a hollow glass globes on it and an arrow inside the globe. I mean it was the thing you were holding earlier."

"You mean this?" Luffy held up the log pose in his hand.

"Yeah that's it, though it looks odd. Without it travel is basically impossible."

"I see," Nami said. "But hold on a sec. Luffy?"

Luffy looked up from his food and Nami punched him square in the face. "How come you have one?!" she yelled. That was actually a very good question.

The punch flung Luffy to the ground where he landed with a thud. He sat back up and adjusted his hat. "This is something that those two weirdos dropped on the ship," he whined.

"They did?" Nami asked still holding her fist out.

"Why did you hit me?"

"Just going with the flow."

"Oh, the flow, huh?"

She took the log pose from Luffy's hand and held it close to her face. "So this is the log pose. There's no dial face."

"It's known that the magnetism of islands in the Grand Line follow a certain rule," Crocus stated. "That is, by recording the magnetism of two islands pulling against each other, you can find the route to the next island. Since you can't even figure out its location in this sea, the magnetism record of the log pose is the only thing you can depend on. At first, you can pick one out of the seven magnetisms produced by Reverse Mountain." Wait there was seven? That's slightly unnerving. "But no matter which island you start with, those magnetisms will eventually pull against each other and link themselves to one route."

"Raftel," Addy stated. She felt a shiver go through her body. "The last point on the Grand Line."

"The only one in history who confirmed that island is the King of Pirates. It's a legendary island."

"Raftel," Nami murmured.

Usopp was grinning, excited about the adventure before them. "Then the One Piece is there?!" he asked excited.

"Who knows," Crocus said. Well actually a lot of people, including him, just none of them will give a straight forward answer. "That's the most prominent theory, but no one has been able to reach there."

"We'll know once we get there," Luffy stated crunching on bone. He let out a sigh. "Now that I'm done eating, shall we get ready?" Addy looked at the plates and saw that all the fish was gone. She could strangle her captain right now and she could probably get away with it.

Sanji's eyes were basically bulging out of his head. "Did you eat all that yourself?!" he yelled.

Usopp's eyes were doing the exact same thing. "Whoa! Even the bones're gone."

Nami strapped the log pose to her wrist. "Log pose, huh? We have to take good care of this. This is the key to our journey."

"Good thing they don't break easily," Addy said. Sanji was busy yelling at Luffy about the fish before kicking him in the stomach. Usual stuff. "I mean if anything happens to it than we are so…." Luffy flew right between Addy and Nami and the log pose shattered. "Screwed." Nami looked like she went into a state of shock. If she elected to kill Sanji and Luffy, Addy was pretty sure she would help her.

"Sanji-kun," she said sweetly.

"Yes, Nami dear," he turned towards her the poor fool.

"Both of you, go cool your heads off!" she kicked the two of them and they went flying into the water. Eh Sanji will save Luffy.

"Hey, hold on a sec," Usopp stated his eyes now bulging towards the broken log pose. "Wasn't that something really important?!"

"That Usopp is what we call a massive understatement," Addy said pinching the bridge of her nose and draining her flask.

"Our precious log pose was…" Nami whimpered as if not able to face the truth of what occurred.

"Don't panic," Crocus said. "I'll give you mine. I wanna thank you guys for Laboon, too." And the day was saved thanks to Luffy beating up a whale. When this day started Addy was pretty sure this wasn't how it was going to end. Said whale popped up and tossed Luffy, Sanji, and the two morons on shore.

"Ahhh," Luffy said relieved. "I thought I'd die. Hm?"

They looked over and saw the idiots. Sanji immediately got up and walked towards the woman. "Here," he said. "Take my hand, honey." He kneeled down and offered her his hand.

"Oh, thank you," she stated taking his hand. Maybe he does have some moves.

"Nice day, isn't it?"

"Hey!" the guy said sitting up. "We have a favor to ask."

"The answer is no, unless he says otherwise," Addy said pointing to Luffy. "We do not owe you anything." Luffy meanwhile had sat up and was picking his nose.

"Now let's not reject them out of hand," Nami said.

Addy rolled her eyes "You just want to know if we can make money off of them."

"Of course not. If they decide to reward our generosity than who am I to say no." Luffy was sitting on the overlooking the two dumbasses who were kneeling on their hands and knees. The rest of the Straw Hats were scattered around keeping an eye on the situation.

"We need you to take us to Whiskey Peak," Mr. 9 said. Okay never mind then, they were definitely going. Any place called Whiskey Peak was bound to offer a fun time.

"Whiskey Peak," Luffy mused. "That's a weird name."

"What's that?" Usopp asked.

"It's where we live uhm, sir" Mr. 9 stuttered.

"What happened to your own ship?" Nami asked.

"It's busted," Miss Wednesday answered.

"Isn't that asking too much, Mr. 9, after trying to kill the whale?" Nami was playing her con artist side. She had that trade mark smirk on her face. This was going to end badly for them.

"So what are you guys?" Usopp asked.

"I'm a king," Mr. 9 answered.

Addy scoffed but placed her hand or her whip. She suspected that this guy was lying or playing an act but still. She hated nobility, even more than she hated the Navy.

Nami stretched his face which must have been painful considering he wasn't made out of rubber. "Liar," she stated letting him go.

"We can't say!" Miss Wednesday said basically bowing before them.

"But we want to go back to the town," Mr. 9 added. "We don't want to be secretive either but…"

"The motto of our company is mystery after all."

"We just can't tell you anything about us."

"Placing confidence in your character, we're begging you."

"We will definitely return the favor."

"Don't do it," Crocus stated. "No matter what they say, they're dishonest people."

"Eh," Addy shrugged. "We will just kill them if they betray us." Everyone looked at her wide eyed. "What? Okay fine. I will kill them if they betray us but I am sort of interested in this Whiskey Peak place."

"By the way," Nami added on lifting up the broken log pose. "We don't have a log pose because we broke it. Do you still wanna ride with us?"

They two of them jumped up and started yelling at them.

"What?!" Mr. 9 screeched. "You broke it?! That's mine you know!"

"How dare you act stuck up just because we're being humble?!" Miss Wednesday shouted. "You guys can't go anywhere either!"

"Oh but actually," Nami said acting smug. Ocean Addy loved Nami. "We have the one that Crocus gave us." The two of them went back to bowing again.

"We beg you people of such character," Mr. 9 uttered.

"You can ride with us," Luffy stated. The two of them sat up surprised. Addy wasn't really. Luffy would offer a ride to pretty much anyone. "Did you say Whiskey Peak? Let's go there."

"Hey, are you serious?" Usopp asked. "We're troubling ourselves to take these shadowy people?"

"What's the problem? Don't worry about small things."

"But you can only choose the route here, the starting point," Crocus pointed out.

Luffy turned his head to look at him. "If we don't like it, then we can go around one more time."

"I see."

"Now, shall we get going? Now I've made a promise with the whale. Let's get ready to set sail."

Luffy stretched out his arms like a normal person. Miss Wednesday looked at him curiously. "Who on earth are you?" she asked.

"Me, I'm the man who'll be the King of the Pirates." The two of them looked like they were about to start laughing and Addy was ready to kick their teeth in and leave for Whiskey Peak without them. The sun was actually starting to set turning the sky into a beautiful orange color. It had been a rather long day and Addy could use some sleep. Zoro had already sat down against the railing and started snoring away. Crocus handed the log pose over to Nami for safe keeping and they all boarded onto Merry. Addy made her way to the helm after waving goodbye to Crocus and Laboon. The whale made one last call as Luffy ordered them to sail off. Gripping the pole in her hand, Addy smiled. They were finally here in the Grand Line. They were one step closer to their goals. One step closer to crowning Luffy king.

* * *

Jag: One Piece logic is something onto itself. I hope I manage to tap into it.


	71. Hidden Appearances Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _So I am back temporarily. Expect another week or so before we are back to our regular schedule updates. However I do have something else for you guys. If you want to get in contact with me about this fic, ask me questions, or send me more detailed suggestions or comments than reviews allow than I have set up an email. It is **onepiecetides gmail**. This does not mean you can slack on reviews. I still expect some. Anyway I hope you enjoy this chapter. I had a real joy writing it though it took awhile. This might be the longest chapter but I have to double check that. The first Addy story arc will kick off soon. They don't exactly match up with the canon arcs but they are pretty close. Expect more info in the coming chapters._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Now that Addy was back in the Grand Line everything was in sync, even if it had only been for a day. Even the weather was acting normal, as it had just started randomly snowing for no apparent reason. Everything in East Blue was too calm and too uniform. It was bizarre. This however was great. Snow was piling up on Merry's decks and the guys were having a great time in it well at least Luffy and Usopp were, Zoro was asleep and Sanji was shoveling. Though Sanji could be having a great time considering Nami ordered him to do it. Luffy and Usopp were in the midst of building snowmen. They however were just wearing what they normal wore. Perhaps they didn't notice the cold. Addy wished she was out there with the rest of them but she had to stay inside and guide Merry. Now that they were in the Grand Line she was going to be spending most of her time glued to the helm with Nami considering she was the navigator. The two of them would have to make sure they were on track. Addy remind her to keeping checking the log pose and so far they were still on course though Nami could do with checking it more often.

Nami however was standing next to Addy in the lounge staring angrily out the window to the main deck, looking like the snow had personally offended her. She was bundled up nice and warm though she still looked cold. Addy was wearing her usual shorts and tank top get up much to the surprise of their guests. Addy just shrugged it off. Wet cold never bothered her.

"What in the world is with this snow?" Nami asked. "It was warm just a little while ago. Addy can you explain this?"

"You want me to explain why snow forms….?" Addy said confused.

"No! I know how snow forms. Just why is it snowing all of the sudden?"

"Well weather doesn't follow predictable patterns. One minute it could be snowing, the next we will be dying of heat. With all the seasons and all the islands, it shouldn't be a surprise that weather is odd."

"What do you mean all the seasons? There are only four."

Addy stared at her eyes wide. "You mean you only have four seasons?! That actually explains a lot." Nami looked at her like she had gone crazy and Addy sighed. "Okay look, here is the deal. There are four different types of islands, Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter. Each of those islands have four seasons, such as fall on a Spring Island or summer on a Winter Island. Meaning that in totally there are 16 different seasons." Nami was nodding soaking up every word. "So naturally this causes all sorts of chaos on Ocean leading to incredibly unpredictable weather patterns."

"Meaning that your piloting skills are going to be needed now more than before," Nami pointed out staring at Addy like she was under a microscope.

"It's why I'm here," Addy replied making a course correction with the helm. They should be out of the snow soon.

" _Hey_ ," Merry said. " _Can we stay in the snow for a while?_ _This is actually my first time in it and everyone seems to be having fun._ "

Addy gave a soft smile. "There is going to be plenty of snow in our future." She heard Nami grumble. "As well as plenty of warm weather."

"How come they're so energetic when it's this cold?" Nami groaned.

"Captain and Usopp having fun out there?" Addy asked.

"Yep," both Nami and Merry answered.

"Nami dear!" Sanji shouted. "How much snow shoveling of love would you like me to do?!"

"Please continue until it stops snowing, Sanji-kun!" Nami yelled back.

"Yaay! Nami dear!"

"He is very easily motivated isn't he?" Addy asked.

"Don't complain," Nami chided.

"Oh I wasn't complaining, more pointing out a fact."

"Hey, you," Mr. 9 stated. The two of them were huddling at the table wrapped in red blankets that they managed to find somewhere. "Doesn't this ship have a heater?"

"I'm cold," Miss Wednesday complained.

"Shut up!" Nami yelled at them. "You guys aren't guests! Go help shovel snow or something or I will let Addy throw you overboard!"

"Please," Addy said. "That would make my day."

She heard a loud boom and a crack. The sounds of lightning and thunder. Seems like it had decided to start to thunder snow.

"Lightening?!" Nami exclaimed. "What on earth is going on with the weather around here?! Addy is it always like this?"

"Pretty much," Addy replied. "You will get used to it after a few weeks." Wind started to pick up as well, Addy could feel it affect Merry's course. She tightened her grip on the pole, she would have be careful.

"It was sunny up until recently," Nami stated. "The next moment, it started snowing and now lightening. The seasons, as well as the weather, go around randomly."

"All part of being in the Grand Line," Addy pointed out steering Merry to avoid the worst of Wind. "It gets even worse when you enter New World. Then it becomes completely random."

"You been in New World?!" Miss Wednesday asked. Both of them were looking at her in shock.

"I was born there actually," Addy answered. "This is my first time in Paradise." She gave them a glare. "That isn't a problem is it?" The two of them squeaked and shuffled as far away as they could from her. Smart move.

"Nami, check the log pose," Addy suggested. They had gone on too long without looking at it.

"I just checked the direction," Nami said though she did so anyway. It was then that she let out a loud scream that went through the entire ship. Addy was sure that the closest island could hear that. Nami raced out the door to inform the others of whatever was going on.

"What's wrong Nami dear?!" she heard Sanji call out.

"Ahh…. No way!" Nami exclaimed. "Turn the ship around 180 degrees! Hurry!" That would take some work. Merry was not built for such quick maneuvers. Nevertheless, Addy shifted the rudder in preparation, the others would have to bring the sails around before they could turn. And since they were the Straw Hats they had to question everything.

"180 degrees?!" she heard Usopp ask. "Why're we going back?!"

"The ship has turned around and is going in the opposite direction! When I looked away from the log pose for a second!"

"It completely changed its direction," Addy said. "Our lives are going to depend on following that thing."

" _That does not seem very dependable,_ " Merry mused.

"It's the only tool we have."

"The waves were calm earlier," Nami muttered. She was still getting used to the weather. Addy could hear the two idiots giggling at the table. A hard glare shut them up and sent them ducking under it. The longer her reputation of being from New World lasted the better.

"Nami," Addy started. "As I have said. In this sea, you can't trust Wind, sky, waves, clouds, anything really. Everything that you would normally use to get around. Even the stars are under cloud cover. You got to use your wits and natural instincts as well as that log pose to see us through. In this sea that is the one thing that doesn't change."

"What would I do without you?" Nami asked.

"Sink to the bottom of Ocean?" She got a hard shove from Nami for that.

"As for you two," Nami said marching towards the two idiots under the table. "Stop being in those cozy blankets and go help already!" She kicked them out the door and Addy was immediately grateful. Now only to figure out how to throw them off the ship without anyone knowing. Nami went out the door to give out orders. "Brace the yard! Receive the wind from the starboard! Turn the ship 180 degrees to the left!" Usopp! Take care of that lateen sail!"

"Got it!" Usopp shouted.

"Sanji-kun make sure to help!"

"At once Nami dear," he yelled running to help Usopp.

"You guys!" she shouted to their guests. "I'm counting on you! And Addy! You know what to do!"

Addy gave her a thumbs up and placed her hands back on the helm. She could feel the movement of the sails and the shift as Merry started turning. Wind was buffeting them but it was nothing that they couldn't handle.

"Hey wait!" Usopp shouted. Then he said something else that Addy couldn't exactly make out.

" _He said that the wind has changed,_ " Merry said.

"Well that shouldn't be too surprising," Addy replied. "It would be odder if it didn't."

"It's the first spring gale," Mr. 9 called out. So the clouds were going away then. Addy relaxed, they should expect warm weather ahead.

"Why?!" Nami exclaimed. The weather was still throwing her for a loop.

"Don't just sleep there while the snow accumulates on you?!" Usopp shouted. Right Zoro was taking a nap. Is he really sleeping through the entire thing? Addy felt as the others race around deck getting the sails in order.

"Hey!" Luffy called out. "I saw a dolphin jump over there! Let's go there!"

"You keep quiet!" Nami yelled. "Addy that wasn't an order. Do not go towards the dolphin."

"Wasn't planning on it," she answered. Besides he didn't say which direction the dolphin was so she couldn't head to it anyway.

It may have stopped snowing and the clouds were gone but Wind was as strong as ever. Addy could feel it hitting the ship, threatening to send them off course. The waves were rocking them as well though with the blessing they were barely more than a nuisance.

"The waves are getting high!" Usopp shouted. "I see an iceburg in the 10 o'clock direction!" That was a bit more of a problem.

"Nami dear!" Sanji yelled. "It's getting foggy!" Okay now it was even more of a problem. If no one could see the iceberg than navigating around became a much more difficult task. Addy closed her eyes and sense out Ocean around her, feeling its ebb and flow.

"What's the hell's with this sea?!" Nami screamed.

"W-W We're gonna crash!" Usopp shrieked.

"No we aren't," Addy called. She sensed where the currents broke against the iceberg. Adjusting Merry she turned her onto a separate current that went around. The barely made it past, the hull just barely scrapping by, but made it they did.

" _Addy have I ever told you how much I love the fact that you are my pilot?_ " Merry asked.

"Several times," Addy said. She could hear cheering from everyone else. Sanji rushed in, praised her remarkable skill and some other nonsense and then got to work making riceballs for the rest of the crew and shrimp for her. It smelled divine and mixed with the salty air left a perfect aroma. They were not completely out of the woods yet and they were going to need to keep their energy levels high.

"The clouds are moving fast!" Nami pointed out. "W-Winds coming!"

" _Black clouds are moving in!"_ Merry added in.

"Think you can handle it Merry?" Addy asked.

" _Always."_

"It's strong," Luffy shouted.

"It's coming," Miss Wednesday yelled.

"Wait what?!" Addy asked. "Don't tell me…"

"Unfurl the sails!" Nami ordered. "That wind is too strong! If we take it directly we will overturn!" Wind was howling outside and Addy felt dread form in the pit of her stomach. If a cyclone was out there then they were in serious trouble.

"Here you go Addy sweet," Sanji said placing a plate of shrimp within arm's reach. He then grabbed a large platter of rice balls and took it outside for the others. "Everyone! Eat this! Let's gather our strength! You're eating too much!" Addy heard a large smack most likely directed at Luffy. Moderation was not in his vocabulary. She also heard Nami scream and felt the sail begin to tear.

" _Addy if you have any ideas…"_ Merry suggested. She was having a rough time with everything. " _I am taking water in below!"_

"What?! How?!" Addy asked.

"Oh, crap!" Usopp exclaimed. "The sail is going to be torn!"

"Go fix things at the bottom of the ship!" she heard Nami yell out. Looks like she had everything under control. "Addy! Keep control of Merry!"

"What do you think I am trying to do?!" Addy responded gripping the pole so tightly her knuckles turned white. Merry was not built to handle this sort of weather. She could feel the entire ship shaking under Wind. Yet together they managed to get her turned around, despite everything around them trying to sink them. Wind, Ocean, lightening, none of that could stop them as they navigated Merry back into safer waters. It was at least two hours before they saw blue skies again and at that point they were all ready to collapse from exhaustion.

They all collapsed on the deck at several different stages of tired. Sanji was straight up lying down while Usopp was leaning against the railing, while the two guests were also lying on the deck on the other side of the mast. The only one who wasn't there was Zoro as he seemed to have slept through the entire storm as he was still snoring by the same railing he napped at. Addy was nursing her flask, leaning against the same railing above the main deck where Nami was collapsed at and massaging her hands while listening to the seagulls squawk. At this point she was grateful that is what she was hearing and not roaring Wind. If she stood in the lounge any longer she would go insane.

"Ahhhh, that felt good," she heard Zoro say. She looked at him somewhat blearily eyed. "Hey," he started to say "No matter how nice the weather is, you guys shouldn't be so lazy. We'd better be on the right track." He looked at Nami as he said that and Addy was tempted to beat his head in.

"You…." They all growled though Zoro didn't seem to hear them.

"Hm, why are you guys on this ship?" he asked of their guests. Ocean how long was he asleep for, that he missed that they were traveling together. Or did he just forget? Both were possible.

"You're slow!" Mr. 9 yelled at him.

"We're heading to their town right now. It's called Whiskey Peak," Luffy stated. He seemed to be the only one not dying of exhaustion.

"You mean we're taking them back?" Zoro asked. "We don't owe them anything." It's called Whiskey Peak moron. Whiskey Peak.

"Right, we don't."

"Well, not like it matters to me." He kneeled down so that he was looking at the two idiots straight on. "Yeah, your faces say you're thinking bad thoughts. What were your names again?"

"I-I'm Mr. 9," he stuttered.

"I'm Miss Wednesday," she said. Both of them seemed extremely nervous and Addy started paying more attention to them. Did Zoro know what was going on with them? They were all standing up now and they seemed to be getting more and more antsy.

"Right," Zoro said. "Something has been bothering me ever since I first heard your names. I feel like I have heard them somewhere before, or maybe not." Take took them aback and they started trembling. Zoro was still sitting down and Addy jumped down to stand beside him. Nami did so as well though she walked down the stairs. "Well either way…" Nami hit him in the back of them head slamming his head forward so that it hit the deck. That killed all the tensions and the two fools seemed to have relaxed.

Nami meanwhile seemed to be glowing with rage as if she had this orange aura around her. She was clenching her fist as if she was about to whack Zoro again. "How dare you sleep comfortably all this time," she growled. "You kept sleeping no matter how many times we tried to wake you up." Zoro started to glow green with rage as well. This wasn't going to end well for anyone. And by anyone she meant Zoro as Nami hit him in the head three more times rapidly without breaks. He gripped his head in pain and now their guests were looking at Nami in fear and amazement.

"Don't let your guard down, everyone!" Nami ordered. "We don't know what else might happen. I was finally able to realize the danger of this sea just now. I was able to understand the reason why it's called the Grand Line. There's no doubt about it, since my navigation skills don't work at all."

"How blunt," Usopp said. "Are we going to be okay?"

"We'll be fine! Things will still work out for sure." They all stood up and stood behind Nami with the exception of Luffy who stood beside her. "In fact.. Look!" She lifted up her arm and pointed. "Our first journey is over." Addy could make out in the distance an island with what looked like rolling hills. As they got closer Addy noticed that they were actually cactus. So there first island was going to be a summer one. Perfect way to ease into the Grand Line. Everyone started smiling, relieved to see land with the exception of Zoro who looked confused. She knocked her shoulder into his and he started smiling as well. She would catch him up with everything later.

"It's an island!" Luffy announced now sitting on the figure head.

"So this is Whiskey Peak…." Sanji stated releasing a puff of smoke. "But it's a really funny looking island."

"Those cacti are huge!"

It was then that there two guests jumped onto the railing.

"Well then, we'll be leaving now," Mr. 9 said.

"Thanks for taking us home, honeys" Miss Wednesday stated.

"If we're linked by fate, we'll meet again!"

"Bye, bye baby!" The two of them said together before flipping off into the water and landing with a splash and swimming off to the island. Good riddance.

"They're gone," Nami said.

"Who on earth were they?" Usopp asked.

"Who cares?" Luffy stated. Addy was in absolute agreement. "We're landing! Addy!" Addy went back to the helm and maneuvered Merry so that she would dock.

"There's a river at the front." Nami pointed out. "Looks like we can go inland by ship." Addy noticed it as well and turned Merry so that she was sailing down the river.

" _You guys be careful okay,"_ Merry said. " _Don't get into any unnecessary fights or anything."_

Addy chuckled, "We will try not to Merry. Though have you seen this crew?"

" _Did Usopp just say something about monsters?"_

"That's him being paranoid. I highly doubt there are monsters this early on in the Grand Line."

" _So there are monsters then? Sanji said it is definitely possible."_

"Merry I can almost guarantee you there are not going to be any monsters on this island."

" _I guess if there are we can just leave. Luffy said we could."_

"Um…." Crap. She forgot to explain the part where they had to stay on the island for a certain amount of time so the log pose could adapt and move to the next island. Well it could wait until later she supposed.

" _What do you and Nami mean we have to stay for the log pose?"_ Oh did she say that out loud. Well at least Nami also seems to be on the same page. Maybe she did explain it and forgot. " _Don't black out on me! How much have you been drinking?"_

Addy took a shot out of her flask to prove her point. She was perfectly fine; she could actually do with a few more in her.

As they sailed further up the river fog seemed to have covered their surroundings. Addy could barely make out the others on deck through the window, much less what was around them.

" _Addy there is something moving on shore_ ," Merry stated tersely. She was mad at Addy though Addy just shrugged it off. She was tired of having this argument anyway. " _Apparently there is a load of people. You may want to check it out if you are sober enough._ " That is when she heard the cheering, as if a ginormous crowd was waiting for their arrival. That just raised Addy's suspicions. No one in their right mind was excited to see pirates. This was a complete and utter trap. Though that doesn't mean she shouldn't abuse it for all its worth.

"Welcome to the Grand Line!" the crowd shouted. They were probably sailing into the main town at this point. "Welcome to our town! To the welcoming town, Whiskey Peak! Pirates! Welcome to our town! Hurray for the heroes on the sea!"

"Addy! Bring the ship to shore!" Luffy shouted.

"As you wish Captain," Addy answered bring Merry to the dock. Once the anchor was down, Addy left the lounge and was greeted by the massive throng of people all cheering for them. Sanji and Usopp were already lapping up the attention, so they were completely enthralled. Nami seemed to be as well though she had an expression on her face that said she was looking for a way to rob these people of all they were worth. Zoro was looking bored and Luffy was being Luffy. Addy stood by Zoro as they made their way onto the shore. Zoro glanced at her and gestured his hand towards the crowd while keeping his other on his sword. He knew.

"Trap," he whispered in her ear.

"I know," she whispered back placing her hand on her whip. "But might as well play along for now. We will probably get free booze out of it. After that then we can kill them."

"I love the way you think."

A large guy, in a blue suit with a massive wave of rolled up blond curls approached them. "Welco…" he started to say before he was interrupted by a coughing fit before singing a very odd tune. That wasn't off putting at all. "Welcome. My name is Igarappoi." Your name is what now? "I'm the mayor of Whiskey Peak."

"Okay," Luffy said. "I'm Luffy. Nice to meet you." He lifted his arm up and pointed towards the mayor's hair. "Pops, you went overboard on curling your hair."

He seemed to have completely ignored Luffy. "Whiskey Peak is a town that thrives on making liquor and music. Hospitality is the pride of our town. As for our proud liquor, it's as bountiful as the seawater." Well they were about to test that fact. Between her and Zoro they could probably drain this place dry. "Would you allow us to throw a party for you so that we may hear your tales of…." He entered another coughing fit. "Your tales of adventure?"

"We'll be glad to!" Sanji, Usopp, and Luffy shouted dancing around excited. Zoro and Addy glanced at each other, they would keep the other from going overboard. Maybe. Nami looked just as skeptical, she probably figured this was a trap as well.

"Three idiots," Nami muttered. "Say, by the way, how long will it take for the log pose on this island to be stored?" she asked the mayor. Was she really asking the people who wanted to keep them trapped here? Like they would give an honest answer.

"Log?" Mayor said confused. "Forget such boring stuff." Or they could avoid the issue entirely. "Please just rest after such a long journey." He clapped Nami on the shoulder and threw her off balance. "Now, everyone! Prepare for the party! Sing to entertain the adventures!"

"Party time!" the crowd shouted. Addy saw that the sun was already starting to set, giving everything a nice red glow. It was the perfect time for a party, though there was never really a bad time for a party. Zoro hooked his arm around hers and together they followed the others towards one of the buildings where the party would be held. Everything seemed to be made out of some sort of gray clay, which made sense considering the lack of wood. Addy stopped thinking about it however as soon as they handed her a mug. She just went wild after that.

Downing as much as she could, she made sure to mix it in with water and the occasional bite of food so that she wouldn't die of alcohol poisoning. Zoro however was drinking much more than she was. Addy wished that she had his constitution. Luffy was eating everything he could lay his hands on, Usopp was regaling the crowd with his stories, at least half of which were true, and Sanji was sitting down basking in the attention that the pretty girls were giving him. He really needed to get laid.

Addy meanwhile was sitting next to Zoro, with Nami sitting across from them looking dejected. Zoro seemed to be having a great time or was at least loosening up. The hand he kept on her back was moving lower and lower as the night rolled on. He was pretty frisky when he was drinking, Addy wasn't sure he could even get drunk. Addy definitely knew she was. The fact that she was more than half tempted to start making out with Zoro was a clear indication of that. She had to admit these people played a very good con. The band knew a wide variety of songs that they kept playing throughout the night. They kept the drinks flowing, though Addy noticed they got progressively stronger as the night wore on. Plenty of food was available, though judging from the expression on the cook they were soon going to run out. The women were very pretty as well hanging on to every word Sanji and Usopp spoke. Some earlier had even tried to approach Zoro though a glare from Addy was more than enough to send them on their way.

"Now, please don't hold back, drink up," the mayor said putting another mug down in front of Nami. Like the others she refused, leaving it to her or Zoro to drink it. Which was probably smart. Then needed at least one sober person with common sense.

"No, thank you," Nami said holding her hands up. "I'd rather not drink alcohol."

"Don't wor…" Another coughing fit, "Don't worry. It's a special drink made of prime grapes that are used to make prime wine. Its flavor is wine itself, but it doesn't contain alcohol." That was a lie if Addy ever heard one and she has heard a lot of them considering she travels with Usopp. And for some reason Nami fell for it. Did she or did she not know this was a trap? Addy was losing track of everything. Zoro was staring at his drink oddly. Did he also notice the increased potency?

"You're right!" Nami exclaimed. "This is delicious!"

"We had a good grape harvest again this year. Now, to celebrate the harvest, we'll have our usual toast competition!" Everyone started cheering. "That is, you continue to toast and the last one standing is the winner. Please join in on our competition."

"No thanks. I can't drink that much."

The mayor dug around in his jacket for something. "The prize money for the winner is 100,000 Berries!" He brought out a sack of money.

"Another cup, please!" Nami said standing up. "Zoro! Addy! You participate, too! You guys don't have money, do you?"

"I wonder why that is?" Addy asked slurring her words.

"What?!" Zoro said looking surprised, he seemed to have no interest in it. Nami stared at him and he acquiesced. No point in arguing against her, it was a losing battle.

Addy was about to lift another tankard to her mouth when Zoro leaned over a whispered in her ear, "I think you had enough."

She gave him a hard glare but it softened slightly when she saw the concern in his eyes, "Zoro, I'm okay really," she whispered back.

"If you drink anymore you are going to fall unconscious. Please just ease up."

Addy hesitated but put the mug down. Zoro was right and since this was a trap it would not be a good idea to black out.

"Cheers!" The crowd called out as the competition began. She leaned against Zoro and placed her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm around her lower back pulling her closer while he drank with his other hand. In what felt like no time at all he had downed tens cups and he did not even seem phased. People were collapsing left and right but he and Nami were still going strong. Nami was on her 12th, when it came to money she was ready to do almost anything.

"Take that!" she shouted as two guys collapsed next to her. Addy thought she heard Luffy call for more food in the background. He had been eating since they got in here. Sanji was surrounded by women, Usopp was doing Usopp things, and Addy was about ready to jump Zoro right here on this couch. The mayor was saying something but she could not bother to care.

"Hey," she whispered in Zoro's ear. "I know you could probably drink Nami under the table but why don't you say we get out of here and have some of our own fun." She lightly nibbled on his ear so that he would get her full meaning.

"This is it. I quit. I'm gonna sleep," Zoro said putting the flask down and getting up, taking Addy's arm in the process. "You should really sleep too Addy."

"Indeed I should," Addy replied. "Though I might need some help." Nami waved them off, clearly drunk, as Zoro basically dragged Addy out of the building and away from the noise, despite the attempts to stop them. Combined glares from both of them put any attempts at that to rest. The night air was cool against her heated skin and Addy licked her lips. She was looking forward to this. A few buildings away from the one they were in, Zoro pushed her against the wall and placed both arms on either side of her head.

"You sure about this?" he asked.

She lightly chuckled. "Positive, you?" she answered. "Though I wouldn't mind getting a better look under the sky. How about that roof over there?" She pointed to the closest building where a ladder was resting against the wall. "Less chance of being disturbed anyway."

Zoro smirked and picked her up bringing the both up the ladder. Once on the roof he gently laid her down.

"Looks like someone wants to top," Addy said smirking.

"You can't have all the fun," Zoro replied lying slightly above her, his forearms resting beside her.

"Okay then, let's see what you have learned."

…

"Ocean damn, you are good," Addy said out of breath. Zoro was panting too as the both put their clothes back on.

"It's only because I had such a good teacher," he responded. "One that I am sure still has loads to teach me."

"Continue to say stuff like that and I am going to rip your clothes off." She felt that she had sobered up somewhat, meaning that she could say stuff but walking in a straight line would be a hassle.

"I'm sure that whip of yours is good for more than just fighting."

"Oh, you want to see what else I can use it for?" She walked up to Zoro and wrapped her arms around his neck and placed her face against his chest. He placed his hands along her upper back though one was combing through her hair. "Maybe next time."

"Yeah," he mumbled into her hair. The quiet of the area seeped in, even the music had died down. Standing here with Zoro she felt at peace. She didn't want to move otherwise the spell would be broken. Zoro seemed to feel the same way as neither of them moved. Unfortunately, they did not have the luxury as both of them heard voices coming from below on the street. With Zoro's help Addy managed to walk over to the edge so that they could both look down. It was the mayor and their previous guests.

"You're such a poet, Igarappoi, no, Mr 8," Mr 9 stated. They were sitting on the roof of one of the lower buildings though they jumped down once Mr 9 addressed them.

"Oh, it's you guys," Mr. 8 said.

"What happened to them?" Miss Wednesday asked.

"They've fallen to hell." Well that was dramatic much wasn't it.

"Geez….." the nun said coming out of a door. "Since they were so stubborn I had to add more alcohol in their drinks." Yep Addy knew it, she could taste it from a mile away. She placed her hand on her whip though she knew she was going to be useless. Zoro was ready with his swords however. He should be able to handle them easily. "Otherwise they might still be up and having a good time. But was it really necessary to put on an elaborate act." The nun took off her outfit, revealing a big buff black woman with pink hair, wearing a short pink and white dress. "For just six weak-looking brats?"

"Zoro," Addy hissed. "You promise you'll make them bleed for that comment."

"Of course," Zoro whispered back the grin on his face growing more malicious. He was excited for the fight.

"We should've beat them at the harbor," former nun said. "This town is already short of food. Also, we didn't have our hopes up for the whale meat anyway."

"You didn't have to say it like that!" Mr 9 shouted. "We did try our best!"

"Calm down," Mr. 8 stated. "Look at this. I've checked them out beforehand." He held up there two bounty posters, Luffy's 30 mil and her 18 mil. That would be enough to give them pause. Particularly Luffy.

"Th-Thirty million Berries?!" the three others shouted.

"Them?!" Mr. 9 screeched.

"And that's not even the one from New World if what she said was true," Mr. 8 pointed out. "It's foolish to judge a pirate's ability based on their looks, Miss Mon…." one coughing fit later. "Miss Monday."

"S-Sorry," Miss Monday said rubbing her head in embarrassment.

"But we've already settled. Looks like we can send a good report to the boss. Confiscate all the money and other valuables on the ship immediately." Which was almost nothing but sure.

"So what about them?"

"What do we do?" Mr. 9 asked. Really? This was sad. Addy could do a better job of running a bounty town then these clowns. First you kill those without bounties, then you shackle those with bounties in sea stone just in case and turn them in. Simple, sweet, easy.

"If we kill them, the bounty drops by 30%" Mr. 8 stated. So don't kill the ones with bounties. No wonder they were running out of food. This was the worst bounty practices Addy had ever seen. "The Government wants to hold public executions. Go! Capture them alive!" Yeah okay good luck with that. They still had to get through the two of them. Okay they had to get through Zoro.

"You deal with these morons," Addy said. "I'm going to rob these people and put it on Merry."

Zoro nodded and drew out one of his swords as Addy walked to the back and leapt down from the roof, or more like tumble down. At least she was off the roof, though with a few new colorful bruises. Sighing she wandered back into the building where the party was at. Might as well make sure that they were okay before she started her robbing spree. Besides that was a good of a place to start as any.

* * *

Jag: It took me forever to figure out how to work around the plot hole of how Addy hasn't explained anything to the rest of the crew. Assuming they already knew was a good bet. Did a sort of similar thing with the weather here. Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Guest: Fantastic

hellspam: Glad you finally caught up. It is rather easy to get lost in everything isn't it. I am still hashing out the details of the Sky island arc. Since clouds are made of water I can assume that she would be able to swim in them but I can also see great dramatic appeal for her being able to drown. Haven't decided quite yet. Got a bunch more plans before that hits. Though yes that is what she is going to be thinking among many other things.


	72. Hidden Appearances Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _I did not like writing this chapter despite the fact that this is probably one of my favorite episodes. I just like this arc in general. The sort of side plot of this arc will kick off next chapter where we will finally meet Vivi and all the entails. As always please review and let me know what you think and if you want to shoot me an email its at onepiecetides gmail. com._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Gunshots echoed throughout the town and Addy smiled. Sounded it like Zoro was doing his job if the screaming was any indication. She had broken into the office of the party building looking for anything that might be considered valuable and so far she hadn't found anything. She had gone through the desk, drawers, every scrap of paper she could find, not that she could read any of it. Nothing the least bit shiny. Further proof that these people were bad at their jobs. Addy almost wished she stuck around to watch Zoro destroy them but considering that the Straw Hats were already pretty much broke this was much more important. Plus, all the screaming would give her a headache and she would rather avoid one.

She wandered back into the main room. The others were all still fast asleep, most of them on the floor except for Nami who fell asleep at the table. Even Addy's rummaging around wasn't waking them up. Ocean they were all going to have headaches later. Except for Luffy who managed to actually avoid drinking anything close to alcohol. He was snoring away while Sanji and Usopp were muttering stuff.

"Addy," she heard Nami whisper. "What's going on?"

Addy walked over to Nami and saw that while her head was still on the table her orange eyes were open clear and bright. She was probably doing better than Addy was at the moment.

"Bounty hunters," Addy whispered back.

"So the welcoming town, Whiskey Peak, is a bounty hunters' nest, huh?"

"Pretty much but that really shouldn't come as a surprise. I mean they were rather suspicious from the beginning."

"I thought it might be something like that. Zoro?"

"Is fighting them. They should be taken care of in a moment."

Nami sat up, stretched out her arms and looked at Addy somewhat amused. "And you're not?" she asked. "I find that surprising."

"Honestly I am having trouble walking in a straight line. I could probably be defeated by a tree at this point," Addy answered. "You got to give me a little bit of time to sober up."

"Anyway, do they have anything good?"

"Not that I could tell but then everything seems blurry right now. The entire world is also spinning which I am pretty sure it isn't supposed to do."

Nami nodded and grabbed Addy's arm taking her back into the office that Addy just walked out of. Perhaps she would have noticed something Addy missed, which was incredibly likely. She heard more yelling coming from outside. Looks like they lost Zoro, though it was more likely that Zoro lost them. Even completely smashed Addy still had a better sense of direction. More gunshots echoed. These people were really trying weren't they. Nami was shifting through the papers that Addy looked through and she heard Nami grumble in frustration. Looks like they really were useless then. There was an explosion as well that sounded like a cannon going off. Couldn't Zoro have taken care of them more quietly?

Suddenly Addy felt a sense of dread. A deep, craving need for blood to be spilled. Looks like Zoro's cursed sword had drawn blood for the first time in years, maybe decades if not longer. She felt that malevolent presence and yet there was another sense to it. It wasn't completely wild but rather tamed. Like it wanted to be where it was rather than being forced. Addy closed her eyes and focused her mind on that presence. It demanded blood but it also exhibited a feeling of content. She opened her eyes again and it hit Addy. That blade had chosen Zoro willingly, perfectly accepting Zoro as his master. It would give him a hassle but it was almost playful and not malevolent. Addy couldn't even begin to describe how many levels of astounding that was. To have a cursed sword accept you…. That was not only a mark of a great swordsman but also what kind of swordsman one was. Perhaps her and Zoro could be more than what they were. Maybe it was….

"Hey Addy," Nami said waving a hand in front of Addy's face. "You okay there? You seemed to have blacked out for a moment." Addy shook her head and cleared her senses. She nodded and Nami went back to work, this time going through all the cabinets that Addy barely looked through. The cursed sword was still obvious but Addy shifted it to the back of her mind. If Zoro was going to be using the sword it would do Addy no good to have it at the forefront of her mind.

They yelling continued. Sounded like Zoro really was giving them problems. It sounded like they were almost right outside. Addy carefully peaked around the door and saw three guys walk in, not caring who they stepped on. Usopp was basically trampled, Addy could make out the foot prints. On the good news side, it did wake him up.

"Did someone step on me?" he asked before collapsing backwards and falling asleep again. Sanji grabbed onto his empty hand. What Addy would give for one of those camera dials at the moment. Luffy was also completely trampled though unlike Usopp it did not even rose him. He was still snoring away as if nothing occurred at all.

"Darn," Nami said. "Is this all the treasure they have?"

"Well you found more than I did," Addy stated looking at the box where Nami was collecting all that she deemed valuable. It looked like junk to Addy but it could be priceless jewels and she probably wouldn't have even noticed.

"Some bounty hunters' nest this is! Whiskey Peak sure is a crappy town."

"No kidding." More gunshots were going on outside. Was Zoro really not done with them? Addy wasn't really sure if she wanted to go outside with a bunch of bounty hunters out there in the condition she was in. Particularly with Nami. They had to get her a decent weapon now that they were in the Grand Line. The staff wasn't going to cut it. There was more crashing and screaming outside. How were the others not awake? There was another crash and a high pitch scream. Sounded like Zoro finished off Miss…. Whatever her name was.

More sounds of fighting. Addy sighed and sat down at the desk while Nami picked through everything a second time. She was half tempted to fall asleep but she could that when they were not surrounded by people wanting to capture them. Two more crashes, more gunfire, Addy was tempted to intervene. Things were starting to become clearer, sort of. She thought she saw blue haired lady come in and roll Luffy out but that would be insane. Zoro would have taken care of her by now. That large crash from outside would indicate that. She looked back in the main room and saw that Luffy wasn't there. He must have rolled out on his own.

In a moment everything was quiet. Zoro must have defeated them. Addy closed her eyes preparing to sleep on the desk. If the threat was gone than there was no worries then. At least until the giant explosion and Addy bolted straight up. That wasn't a good sound. Swords don't create massive explosions or at least Addy didn't think they did. Maybe she should go find Luffy. Addy jumped off the desk and started walking out the door when Nami grabbed her shirt.

"Oh no you don't. Who is going to defend me if you leave?" Nami asked her. "Do you hear what is going on outside."

Addy turned and blinked at her. "Nami, I am almost blind drunk right now. The only reason I haven't passed out yet…. Actually I don't know why I haven't. I can't defend myself much less…."

"Nonsense," Nami slapped her on her back laughing slightly. Was she living in denial? "So we are going to leave together. Besides these other houses might have loot in them." Doubtful but Addy shrugged and followed Nami's lead.

With the night quiet it was safe to walk around. The two of them walked past several bounty hunters in various stages of consciousness and death. Zoro really did do a number on them. Addy was about to continue to walk forward when Nami placed a hand against her chest and forced her against the wall.

"What the…" Addy asked but Nami shushed her. Pointing around the corner. Addy peaked around and saw two new people standing in front of the collapsed mayor and the two morons. This should be interesting.

"How pitiful," the tall black man spoke, "losing against one swordman." He had wild black hair, sunglasses and a long brown coat that went to his ankles. The woman standing next to him was also strange. In a ridiculously short yellow dress, with what appeared to be sliced open lemons on it, she also wore a goofy white hat, gloves and boots. She was twirling a parasol in one of her hands. Addy wondered what silly names these people had.

"Mr. 5! Miss Valentine!" the mayor spoke.

"Are you guys kidding around? Huh?" Mr. 5 clearly wasn't in a happy mood, which was probably a bad thing considering the expressions on the others. They were terrified of the newcomers which wasn't a good sign.

Lemon woman laughed and Addy almost jumped and killed her but Nami stopped her. Her laugh was grating and Addy could feel a headache starting to form. Dear Ocean just someone please end that woman.

"After all, this is the difference between our rank and yours, isn't it?" lemon woman said. Her voice was just as annoying as her laugh. If they ever met again Addy would totally kick her ass to the moon.

"Did you come to laugh at us?" the mayor asked. He was bleeding from the mouth and looked like he was in rough shape. She should reward Zoro later.

"That, too, but…" Mr. 5 stated. So there was something more going on here. She overheard Zoro mention them being part of some organization. Barbecue or something. Not that Addy really cared. Pirates shouldn't mess with that sort of thing. As Sarabi always said politics is for people who hate freedom.

Lemon lady started laughing again and Addy growled gripping her whip. Just someone make her stop. "Of course, we're here under our mission," lemon lady spoke. How could anyone stand to listen to her.

Fake king guy started laughing as well, "Thank goodness," he sputtered. Looked like he took quite a pounding as well. "If you help us that man is no match for us!" If they were having this much trouble with Zoro she couldn't wait until Luffy woke up.

"That's right," blue lady said. She looked better off than the others. Addy had to suppress a groan. If Zoro went easy on women during a fight that could cause problems. At least she looked somewhat beaten up so Zoro didn't completely hold back. "Please beat that swordsman right away."

"Huh?" Mr. 5 said. He looked at them humorously. "Enough with the bad jokes. Us help you?"

"Did you really think that we'd come all the way to the end of the Grand Line for that?" Lemon lady added on. She laughed again and Addy put her on her most annoying peoples list. Why did she have to drink so much?

"What?" fake king asked. "Then what mission did you come here for?"

"You really have no idea?" Mr. 5 asked stepping forward. "There're criminals here that are big enough for the boss to send us here to deal with." The others were looking at him shocked except for blue hair who looked at him with narrowed eyes. Well if that didn't give it away, Addy wasn't sure what would. "These're the boss's words: 'They're found out my secrets.' Of course, I don't even know what kind of secrets they are, but our company's motto is mystery. No matter whose identity it is, the rule is that you never nose around. If someone finds out the boss' secrets, that's, of course, a sin worthy of death."

Lemon lady stepped up and Addy rolled her eyes. "So, when we very carefully investigated who learned his secrets," she stated before laughing. Addy winched at the sound of her voice. "Oh boy, we found out that a VIP from a certain kingdom sneaked into Baroque Works." Oh this was major politics. They should stay as far away from this as they possibly could.

"A certain kingdom?" fake king asked. "W-Wait a sec!" He stood up and Addy could see the fear etched into his face. "Although I'm wearing a crown, I'm not a king or anything!" No one was suspecting that you were. Idiot. "It's just my hobby!" What kind of hobby involves dressing up in a crown?

"We're not talking about you!" Lemon lady yelled at him.

"The sinners are those who're missing from Alabasta Kingdom right now," Mr. 5 added in. Now they were totally staying away from this. Addy wanted to stay as far away from that kingdom as possible. She really really hated deserts. Even being here was taking its toll. She could feel the dry air leech moisture from her skin. Alabasta would be a million times worse.

The mayor started trembling. He was looking down so Addy couldn't see his eyes but she suspected they were full of fear. He bolted upright pulling his bow ties and releasing what looked like guns from his wig. "Die! Igarappappa!" he yelled as the guns let out short bursts of bullets. Addy ducked back around the corner to avoid the explosion which created a massive cloud of red dust. The explosion hit Mr. 5 and lemon lady straight on. "I won't let you lay a finger on our princess!" They were nobles?! Addy did not even bother to hide the growl, taking her whip in hand. Screw them, she hated nobles. Not only had they tried to capture them but they were also dragging her nakama into this political mess. If they tried anything else she would cut them down where they stood. "On my name as Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security!"

"Igaram!" the blue hair lady shouted. Now that was a much more sensible name. By process of elimination she must be the princess. No wonder she was such a poor fighter.

"Igaram," Mr. 5 said. Well it sounded like he lived. "The Squad Captain of Alabasta Kingdom Security." The dust cleared revealing the two of them standing, perfectly unharmed. "And its princess, Nefertari Vivi. In the name of Baroque Works' boss, we'll eliminate you two." Addy thought she should send them a thank you card. Nami seemed shocked however and she clutched Addy shoulder. She wondered what Nami was thinking. Somehow she doubted they were on the same page.

Princess meanwhile looked shocked that they managed to survive the explosion. Or perhaps she was contemplating her soon to be killers. Whatever the case Addy was beyond caring until she glanced at something behind Princess. Luffy was sleeping on the ground without a care in the world. How in Ocean did he get out here?! Did Addy not actually imagine them taking him? Well she seriously dropped the ball there. Now they had a problem, Luffy was trapped in the middle of their fight. Question was how to get him out of there without getting involved. This wasn't going to be fun.

* * *

hellspam: We are getting closer to Alabasta though it might take longer than you think to get there for one reason or another.

Jag: Her and Zoro are really coming together as a couple. Hopefully I haven't completely forgotten how to write them after the hiatus. Working around knowledge is probably one of the biggest challenges of this series.

blackphoenix2217: This fic is sort of a monster isn't it. Who knows how long its going to be by the end. The bad at aiming thing is more of a quirk like how Zoro gets lost all the time. If there is a sort of explanation its probably that with the whip she has full control over it while if she throws or shoots something that she doesn't have full control.


	73. Hidden Appearances Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _I'm back hopefully for good this time. Expect the regular posting schedule though things might be a bit wonky for a little bit as I adjust to writing this again. Okay so this is the start of what I am going to call the Addy character arcs. This is going to be one of many. So expect to see some major changes and reveals in the coming chapters. On another note let's talk about Vivi. I'll be honest I have never been Viv's biggest fan. I though that she was a decent character that was underdeveloped so expect some development for Vivi and for her to be in some fight scenes. Yes Vivi is going to get at least one battle under her belt as well as other development aspects._

 _As always please review and let me know what you think. And you can always email at Onepiecetides gmail if you have anything in particular that you want to ask._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Igaram let out another barrage of firepower but it was as ineffective as the last one. Creating a large cloud of dust it blocked Addy's view, covering all except the top of the buildings. Looking around Addy also spotted Zoro sitting on the roof top, bottle in hand. She breathed out a sigh of relief. Zoro would take care of the Luffy problem, which left her with the princess problem. Maybe they would get a reward from the Baroque works boss for killing her. They could use the cash.

Suddenly in front of them there was an explosion and the dust cleared. Igaram was lying face first in the dirt, the princess shouting his name.

"It's no use," Lemon lady called out. Addy turned towards her voice and saw her floating up in the sky, using the parasol to maintain her height.

"Devil Fruit," Addy stated getting Nami's attention. Not that it should be that surprising. They were in the Grand Line. "You should probably find someplace safer. It can get very messy very quickly." She looked around and Nami was already gone. So much for that then.

Lemon lady laughed again and Addy grinded her teeth. Forget later she was totally going to kick her ass. Somehow. She will figure it out. Lemon lady meanwhile floated down, still laughing and kicked at Princess. Princess dodge but in the process her hair band broke so that her blue hair which was normally tied in a ponytail was now falling down her back. Addy groaned. Of course Princess had to be pretty. Not that it would make it harder to kill her but more of a shame. Before Lemon lady could float off again, Princess drew her weapon and swiped at Lemon lady however she nimbly floated away still laughing before landing back by her partner.

"You monsters," Princess muttered. She should really look in the mirror if she wanted to see a monster. These guys were just doing their job, which was apparently to root out traitors. So far they seemed pretty good at it.

"You're a princess, Miss Wednesday?!" Fake king guy asked bowing before her and shaking his rear in the air.

She turned and yelled at him, "Quit being dumb, Mr.9!" Addy wasn't sure that was entirely possible. Zoro chose this moment to jump down and grab Luffy dragging him out of the fighting area.

"This is one screwed up night!" he stated. Addy grinned, Zoro had the right idea. "You guys can do whatever you want!" He took Luffy down some alleyway in the complete opposite direction of Merry or where the rest of the crew was. Addy face palmed and started navigating towards him. Last thing they needed was for both captain and first mate to be hopelessly lost. Unfortunately, she didn't make it very far as a wave of dizziness overcame her and she clutched her head and sat back on the ground. Her head was pounding and her heart felt like it was about to burst. She clutched at her locket trying to calm herself down but she could feel her body tense and jerk. What was going on? This had never happened before.

"Igaram!" Princess called out. Addy could barely see anything in front of her and the voice sounded garbled but she could still make out words. "Are you all right?!"

"Never mind me!" he answered her. Addy wasn't sure if it was her hearing or the fact that he was probably dying that made him sound so gravely. "Just please….. escape from here! For our motherland. Without you, our kingdom of Alabasta will be….. Please! Hurry!"

"You think you can escape from us?" Mr. 5 asked or who Addy assumed was Mr. 5. It was hard to tell. Closing her eyes, she started to sense out the nearest water source and felt that the river was close by. Unfortunately, not close enough.

"Don't mess with me!" Princess yelled. Addy thought she heard something whirling in the air but right now she could care less. She face planted into the ground. Perhaps a nap would do her good. Now if only people would stop yelling.

"I'm having a hard time swallowing what's going on here," fake king man said. Really? It wasn't that hard to figure out. Addy did it and she was about to black out. "But we've been a pair for a long time. I'll buy you some time!" Princess you do not deserve that kind of loyalty. "Get going, Miss Wednesday!"

"Mr. 9," she said back to him.

"Pretty manly, wouldn't you say? Bye-bye, baby! Hot blooded Bat…." He started screaming like a loon and Addy groaned. Her body felt like it was on fire and all she really wanted to do was sleep. Where was some water when she needed it?

"All we need is the will to accomplish our missions," Mr. 5 said. "A pathetic sense of camaraderie will only bring about death. Time to learn the hard way! Nose Fancy… Cannon!" There was the sound of a large explosion and Addy groaned sitting up. She was not going to get peace and quiet anywhere near here. A splash echoed as the fake king guy was flung into the river and Addy started dragging herself towards the water source. Hopefully she remained unnoticed. Being caught right now would be very bad.

"Mr. 9!" Princess yelled. Dear Ocean could anybody be quiet?

"Whoa, now!" Zoro said. Apparently he didn't make it very far either. "That's some dangerous snot he's got!"

'What?' Addy thought but then shook her head. She was probably better off not knowing. Not knowing right now would be a good idea. She felt something move beside her and looked up. Everything was blurry but she could make out a green blob.

"Addy you alright," Zoro asked hooking his arm around her.

She leaned against him unable to support her own weight. "Wouldn't you throwing me in the river," she stated. "That sounds good right about now."

"No problem." He sounded concerned though that could have been Addy imagination. She felt him jerk around some like he was trying to shake something off. "What the hell?!"

"Sir Swordsman!" she heard a voice below them call out sounding like Igaram. "Upon seeing your skill, I have a request, unreasonable as it may be!"

"Yeah, right!" Zoro shouted back. "Screw that!" She could not have said it better herself. As if they would ever listen to a request from some noble's servant. "Let go of me!"

"As both of those people possess Devil Fruit powers, I can't stop them!" Igaram yelled at them.

"Yeah, that's kinda the point," Addy slurred but it was doubtful Igaram heard her.

"Might I ask you to protect the princess in my place?!" Igaram cried out desperately.

"Hold on," Addy said trying to keep her voice level. "Did you just ask us to protect Princess?" She thought she could feel Igaram nod and she burst out laughing. Zoro had to basically hold her up otherwise she would have collapsed back on the ground. "You want us…" she wheezed.

"Addy you alright there?" Zoro asked concern coming back into his voice.

"Oh yeah I'm fine," Addy replied wiping away some of the tears that had formed. "That is just the dumbest thing I have heard in a long time. Us protecting a princess." She shook her head. "No way in Ocean. Besides I think your precious princess is running now."

Sure enough Princess had taken off on her chicken thing while the two Devil Fruit users were in hot pursuit. Addy hoped it wouldn't be too long before they caught her.

"If you can safely deliver the princess to the great kingdom of Alabasta far east of here I promise you will be rewarded immensely!" Igaram pleaded with them. "I humbly beg of you! Please, keep the princess safe!"

"I don't care if you give us the entire kingdom of Alabasta itself," Addy snapped back. "The answer is no way in all the five Oceans!"

"Screw that!" Zoro also shouted at him. Once again her and Zoro were on the same page. "You were trying to kill us until just a minute ago! Don't make me cut you some more!"

"Oh please do so," Addy asked. "I can't see straight enough to do it myself."

"Is this immense reward for real?" Another voice called out. Addy cursed under her breath. Nami had overheard the conversation. It was going to be an absolute nightmare to talk her out of it. "I'll take up that offer! How does one billion berries sound?"

"Nami!" Zoro exclaimed slightly stunned though he really shouldn't be at this point. Nami and money go together hand in hand.

"O-One billion Be…?!" Igaram stuttered. Well it sounded like they couldn't pay that much. Shame for them. I guess they will have to die then.

"I thought you were asleep?" Zoro asked.

"Nah," Addy answered "She has been up for awhile."

"Yeah, come on now," Nami answered sounding like she was jumping down from somewhere. "Who in their right mind would sleep carelessly in an overly suspicious town that welcomes pirates? It was all an act! A-C-T, act! I could keep on going if I wanted!" Somehow that didn't surprise Addy in the slightest.

"That so?" Zoro huffed. Igaram was still on the floor making strange noises.

"So," Nami stated. "Will you promise us the one billion, Squad Captain? If you don't ask for our help, your princess probably will die."

"A mere soldier like me can't promise such a large sum of money," Igaram mumbled. Dead princess it is then. Not that they would take the deal of course.

"You're not suggesting a princess is worth less than that, are you?" Nami was doing that voice again. The one that would convince a captain to hand over his ship. Normally Addy loved that voice but right now… "Pay it."

"Now she's threatening him!" Zoro muttered.

"In that case," Igaram coughed and sputtered. "If you are willing to safely deliver the princess there, it would be best if you negotiate the terms with her directly!"

"Meaning, I gotta start by saving her huh?" Nami asked.

"Even as we speak her life is in danger!"

"Alright, then. I'll save your princess…."

Addy interrupted her in the middle of her sentence. "I think that this game has gone on for long enough don't you?" Addy asked.

Nami looked at her confused or what Addy assumed was confused. "What?"

"We aren't actually going to save her. She is a noble who are basically the scum of the earth." Addy spat. "All they do is enrich themselves and leave other people's lives in ruins. They are greedy, selfish, monsters who should be killed if you are given the chance. The only reason that we should even think about saving this girl is if we were going to sell her to the people trying to capture her in the first place."

"Addy…" Nami sputtered surprised by the venom in Addy words. Zoro also tensed around her. She seemed to be pushing against his boundaries as well. "That would be just cruel."

"And no less than what she deserves," Addy snarled. "I assume you haven't run into many nobles so let me tell you. With one exception they are all basically down right evil."

"How dare you speak of the royal family in those terms!" Igaram shouted at her.

"Oh shut up will you!" Addy responded. "If it wasn't for the fact that I'm basically useless right now I would have killed you and your princess when you first revealed who you were!"

"Addy!" Nami stated her tone cautious. "You have to admit we are strapped for funds right now." Addy grumbled, there was no denying that fact. "And if we save the princess and get paid then we are going to be essentially bankrupting the entire royal family." That is technically true as well. "What would be more enticing, just killing them?" Nami seemed to be stumbling over those words. "Or making them live in poverty for the rest of their lives?"

She did actually have some of a point there. Addy sighed, at least she could pretend to accept the deal. Captain would have the final word anyway and there is no way he would help nobles. He only helps good people. "If we can convince her to give us one billion berries than I think we have deal. Otherwise she is dead."

"Alright," Nami agreed. "That sounds good to me. Okay! Go get her, Zoro!"

"Yeah, right, you idiot!" Zoro shouted at her. Actually that makes things way easier. "Why do I have to go along with your money making schemes?! Addy doesn't even really want her alive and they tried to kill us! Why should I go save her?!"

"Geeze, you're so stupid!" Nami exclaimed. "My money is mine, but my contracts belong to all of you!"

"That's the kind of logic a bully would use!"

"What's the big deal?! All you gotta do is cut those guys down! Addy help me out here."

"You're on your own on this one," Addy said. "I can go either way on this."

"I don't like being used," Zoro grumbled. "Unlike that idiot cook!"

"You're just afraid you can't beat them!" Nami said. Oh go for the weak spot. That was a cheap shot.

"What?! Just try saying that some more!" She could feel Zoro tense up as if he was holding himself back from punching her. She unfurled herself away from Zoro and leaned against the nearest wall that she ran into. She did not want to get in the middle of this. Addy needed a river and soon. And hopefully by the time they were done arguing Princess would be dead.

"You're just afraid you can't beat them!"

"Quit repeating that crap!"

Nami leaned back slightly knowing that she had the advantage. "Hey now. Have you forgotten? You owe me money."

Zoro crossed his arms and gave her a side glare. "Huh?! I don't owe you nothing."

"I lent you 100,000 Berries for some swords in Loguetown."

"I gave you the 100,000 right back! Someone gave me some swords, so I didn't use the money!" Someone just gave him a cursed sword? That must have been a relief for them.

"But you did agree to pay me back 300%. 300,000 Berries total. You haven't paid back the other 200,000 Berries yet."

"I gave you the 100,000 Berries back the same day! Gimme a break!"

"Nope!" She was not going to back down on this one. Convincing her to throw Princess overboard might be harder than Addy thought. "Can't you even keep a single promise?" That was the final blow for Zoro. Nami is insanely good at what she does. "Do what I say, and maybe I'll call us even!"

"D-Dammit!" Zoro hissed. "You're not gonna die a good death, you know!" None of them were. Well Usopp might.

"Yeah. I'm going to Hell."

"Damn woman!" He took off like a bullet following where the princess ran off to. Hopefully he would find her corpse and not much else.

"Thanks a bunch," Nami called after him.

"I'm so ashamed…" Igaram muttered. "If only I'd been stronger, I could have protected the princess!"

"Don't worry about it!" Nami said. "He's insanely strong! And Addy is basically out cold so you don't have to worry about her."

"I am still awake you know," Addy slurred.

"If anything should happen to the princess, to Vivi…. The kingdom of Alabasta would be finished."

"And we would all rejoice," Addy grumbled.

"She must live!" Igaram shouted with all the energy he had left.

Explosions were going off in the background and Addy grinned. Hopefully Princess was caught in one of those. That would save Addy from trying to figure out a way to kill her later. That is if she didn't pass out and die first. Sensing out a nearby water source she found a barrel of water nearby. Right next to the one Nami was sitting on. Walking over and opening it up, she dunked her entire head in it.

She lifted her head back out of the water not spilling a single drop. The headache had become a dull throb. Her limbs were filled with grit but movable. Heartbeat no longer racing but still eradicate. At least her vision cleared up so the world was no longer blurry. Her hearing cleared up as well though she could still detect a faint buzzing. Hopefully a jump in Ocean would solve everything though Addy felt in the pit of her stomach that there was something else going on with her. Something that would not be so easily fixed with a dive.

"Say...What is Baroque Works, anyway?" Nami asked.

"Do we honestly care?" Addy replied.

"It's more of a curiosity question. So what are they?"

Igaram seemed to struggle with the question as if he was fighting with himself to actually answer. Finally, he sputtered out an answer. "A secret crime syndicate."

"Yeah, we figured that out by ourselves," Addy snapped. "Give us an actually answer."

"None of their members knows their boss' face or name," Igaram continued though he wasn't telling them anything they didn't know already. "Its main work is espionage, assassination, larceny, and bounty hunting. It's all done at their boss' command."

Nami shrugged her shoulders and looked at him confused. "Why would they listen to their boss, whose identity they don't know?"

"Baroque Works' ultimate objective is the founding of an ideal nation! Everyone who does well within the company now will be guaranteed a high social standing within the ideal nation that the boss will be creating before long."

"I see…"

"I assume that it's in Alabasta where he wants to make his ideal nation," Addy stated. "A regime toppled and replaced by another. One of the oldest stories in the world."

"The boss's codename is Mr. 0," Igaram continued. "In other words the closer a person's codename is to zero, the higher the person's future standing will be and more than anything, the stronger they are! The strength of those from Mr. 5 and above is especially incredible."

There was fighting and explosions going on in the background and what appeared to be shouting. Hopefully they finally managed to catch up to Princess and kill her. Knowing Zoro he is probably on the other side of the island.

"We should probably check it out," Addy said starting to walk in the direction of the noise. "At least to make sure that everyone is doing their jobs properly."

"Agreed," Nami said jumping off the barrel. "If Zoro doesn't do his job than I'm going to raise his debt."

Addy grinned and felt bad for Zoro because at the moment saving Princess was the last thing on her mind.

* * *

hellspam: Addy hating nobles is actually a major plot point. The reason why is going to be revealed eventually. Her and Vivi are going to have an interesting dynamic to say the least. You'll see what happens between them. As for the timeskip I have pretty much got it settled. We won't exactly be following Luffy's POV but it will be right in the heart of the action and we will also be seeing what Addy is doing. Addy powers are going to be developed in a hopefully interesting way but its going to be a long time before we hit the time skip so I'm still thinking things through.

Jag: I tend to actively avoid other OC stories because they tend to not follow how I think an OC character should act. I am sure there are other good ones out there but they are not interesting to me. Let's just say she is not going to have a fun time in Alabasta and her and Zoro are going places. Expect more of them in future chapters.

Yuuzhan Vong Jedi: I hoped that I answered your question. If you ever have another one let me know and I will do my best to answer it.


	74. Hidden Appearances Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _Honestly I'm not sure what I think of this chapter but I hope that you enjoy it. Took forever for me to complete. This was not an easy one to write. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Walking down the basically destroyed village at this point the streets were littered with those Zoro had beaten. It gave Addy a sort of thrill. Her crewmates were strong, strong enough to withstand everything. At least that is what she thought until she saw Zoro and Captain prepared to kill each other right in front of the still very alive princess. Addy sighed and rubbed her temple while Nami walked up and punched the two of them in the head for their lunacy.

"Knock that off!" she shouted sending the two of them to the ground. Both of them face planting in the dirt. "What the heck are you guys doing?!"

"Well it appears they were fighting," Addy stated walking over and standing next to Nami. Nami rolled her eyes at her and placed her hands on her hips and started walking towards them. Addy followed keeping one eye on the princess waiting for an opening.

"It's just a good thing you managed to keep the girl alive!" Nami muttered. Now it was Addy turn to roll her eyes. "You almost let a billion Berries get away from us!" She picked them both up from the collar of their shirts. Nami was insanely strong when she was angry. "Understand?!"

"What are you talking about?" Princess asked. Addy growled and pushed back her shoulders though she was about as intimidating as a wet paper towel. Meanwhile Zoro and Luffy were still punching and fighting each other. What was going on between them? "Why did you save me?"

"Right!" Nami grinned. "We need to talk about that! It's like this… won't you make a contract with me?"

"Contract?"

"If I were you I would take it," Addy growled hand on her whip. "Because right now it's the only thing that's giving you a slim chance for survival. Though even if you do take it… well I hope you enjoyed your last sunrise" She saw Princess gulp. Now she was getting to her.

"Quit fighting," Nami yelled punching Zoro and Luffy to the ground again. Well this is going smoothly. "Addy speak to Luffy. You're the only one to get him to understand. And stop threatening to kill the princess."

Addy grumbled but complied as Luffy settled on a barrel and Zoro sat down on the ground leaning against a box while Nami was busy explaining the contract. Both looking expectantly at her.

"Okay, town filled with bounty hunters who wanted to take our stuff and kill us. Gave us food so that it would be easier to take our stuff. Zoro found out and beat up bounty hunters trying to take our stuff. Then a bunch of other stupid stuff happens and it turns out that blue hair lady is a princess which the secret organization that hired all the bad guys in the town, wants to kill. And we should let them or at least kill her ourselves."

Luffy started full on laughing. His laughter echoing through the destroyed town. "Oh! You should have just said so, Zoro! I just figured you cut them all down cause they didn't make any food you liked!" Addy looked at him. Does that mean he agreed with her about killing the princess. Or did he just ignore that part entirely.

"Don't compare me to you!" Zoro yelled at him. Luffy just kept on laughing and Addy gave a small smile. They certainly had a strange captain.

"C'mon! Don't sweat it!"

"Shut up, you two!" Nami shouted before turning back to the princess. "So there you have it! As compensation, I'd like one billion Berries. You saw how strong these guys are. It's a pretty good offer, if you ask me."

Princess looked distraught about what she was hearing, a sharp frown was on her face and her eyes looked dull. "I can't," she said looking up at Nami. Nami's smile disappeared as Princess continued. "I do appreciate you saving me. Thank you."

"Why can't you?! You're a princess! One billion shouldn't be much."

"Do you know of the kingdom known as Alabasta?"

"Unfortunately," Addy stated hand back on her whip. If the deal didn't go through than there was no reason to keep her alive. After all she could still kill Princess after they were paid. Two goals in one. "But please let us know what you think of it."

"It's a peaceful kingdom known as a great civilization and nation," Princess said. "Well, it used to be."

"Used to be?" Nami asked. "What about now?"

"It's in the middle of a civil war. For years now, signs of a revolution have begun to appear." Addy tightened the grip on her whip. Screw the money there is no way she is going to help stop what is probably a legitimate revolt so Princess could stay in power. "The people revolted, and the kingdom fell into total chaos. Then, one day, I heard the name of an organization…" Her fists tightened and she basically spat out the name. "Baroque Works! I learned that the populace was being manipulated by this group but there was a tight lid on any other information than that, and there was nothing I could do. That's when I asked Igaram, who always meddled in my business since childhood for help."

"The old tube guy?" Luffy asked putting his hands beside his head trying to mimic the crazy hair the guy had.

"Tube? Oh yes. I asked him if there was a way I could infiltrate Baroque Works. Because that would let us see who was pulling the strings, and what their goal was."

"You're a pretty high spirited princess," Zoro remarked. Addy groaned. Don't tell her that Zoro was buying into this garbage. Was she the only one who could see beyond her pretty face? "So? Did you figure out this goal of theirs?"

She nodded before Nami interrupted answering. "The founding of an ideal nation. That's what Igaram said anyway."

"The boss says it's to create an ideal nation," Princess continued. "But it's an enormous lie! The true goal is to take over Alabasta Kingdom!" Then it's not exactly a lie then or at all, Addy thought. Regimes fall it is what it is. "I have to hurry back, tell everyone the truth, and stop the fighting!" So that your family can stay in power? Addy was done listening to this drivel. There was no way they were going to take her anywhere. "If I don't do something, If I don't do something….." she was trembling, her entire body shaking.

"I see…" Nami said. "So that's the deal. Now everything finally connects. There'd be no money during a civil war, huh?"

"Hey," Luffy said all head turning towards him. "Who is pulling the strings?" Not actually a bad question. Perhaps they could hand over the Princess for some cash.

"T-The boss's identity?!" Princess yelled looking shocked. "You shouldn't ask that!"

"You know who it is, right?"

She was waving her hands around trying to stop Luffy from prying. "Don't ask me! Anything but that! Your lives would be put in danger, too!" That threw Addy off. Did she actually care about their well being or was it all a ruse?

Nami started chuckling, "I think I'll pass on that! After all, these guys are trying to take over an entire country! They're obviously insanely dangerous people!"

"Yes! They are! As strong as you people may be, you'd never stand a chance against one of the shichibukai Crocodile!"

There was a brief moment of silence before Luffy asked who now and everyone reacted. A bird and a sea otter who had only shown up a minute before suddenly flew off. Nami was freakin out all over the place while Luffy and Zoro was wondering how cool it would be to fight one of the shichibukai while Addy in the blink of an eye unraveled her whip and wrapped it around Princess's throat. This was going to end now.

Tears were flying out of Nami's eyes. "Being hunted by a shichibukai the moment we enter the Grand Line," she muttered her face in her hands. She started shaking her head. "Is too much to handle."

"We're lucky we can see him so soon!" Zoro exclaimed. Oh Addy hoped not.

"I wonder what he's like?" Luffy asked.

"Shut up, you too!" Nami yelled. She then started walking off. "It's been a short acquaintance but I thank you for everything!" Does that mean Addy can kill the princess? Princess tried to get up but Addy yanked her back down.

"You're not going anywhere until we get this sorted," Addy hissed. Princess nodded and stayed put. Addy could see the fear in her eyes despite Princess's attempts to cover it up.

"Where are you going?" Luffy asked.

"They don't know what we look like yet! I'm running away!" Unfortunately, the otter and the vulture had not flown too far away and instead had been drawing what they look like. Before any of them could react they flew off most likely to report back to their boss. "I guess this means there is nowhere to run now, huh?" Nami shouted before curling up in a corner.

"She's funny," Luffy proclaimed.

"Where was she planning on running to anyway?" Zoro asked.

"Probably anywhere but here," Addy said.

Zoro shrugged. "Guess that means all four of us are on Baroque Works's hit list now." Luffy chuckled and grinned and Addy let out a small smile as well. Taking out both a noble and a shichibukai sounded like a perfectly good use of one's time. Except for the fact that it was Crocodile and he was in Alabasta.

"That's exciting for some reason!" Luffy announced. Nami was still sobbing in a corner and Addy let Princess wander close enough to try and comfort her though she still kept her on a leash.

"Fear not!" a voice called out. They all turned and Addy immediately wished she didn't. Igaram was dressed up like the Princess and carrying four sacks vaguely shaped like people. She was never going to be able to unsee this not matter how much drinking she did. "It's all right! I have a plan!"

"Igaram!" Princess exclaimed looking just as shocked as the rest of them. "What are those clothes?!" An abomination against mankind. Addy, Princess and Luffy walked up to him since Addy was keeping Princess on a tight leash. This was going to end badly for someone.

"You look hilarious in those, old guy!" Luffy pronounced. That was an understatement. He was poking his head all over Igaram, checking out the ridiculous outfit.

"It's idiot after idiot," Nami mumbled looking like the world had ended and a dark cloud was hovering over her.

"Vivi. Please listen to me carefully," Igaram stated. "What's that around your neck?!"

"My whip so you better talk fast or she is dead," Addy snarled.

Igaram looked conflicted but continued. "Once Baroque Works intelligence network learns of something, pursuers may come after you almost immediately. On top of that if you know the boss' secrets. You know what happens."

"A thousand or so people will come after you," she said. Nami basically jumped out of her skin with that statement.

"Therefore I will pretend to be you, like so, and sail straight to Alabasta with four dummies on board."

"These are us?" Luffy asked poking one of the dummies. Addy was thinking the exact same thing. This was a very dumb idea and that was saying a lot considering she had been sailing with the Straw Hats for some time now.

"A decoy, huh?" Zoro said also looking at the dummies wide eyed.

"While the pursuers are busy with me, all of you will head to Alabasta via the normal route."

"Hold on there," Addy said yanking on the whip pulling Princess to the ground. "There is just one tiny problem with your plan. We are not sailing her anywhere."

Luffy looked at her confused, "Take the princess there? What now?"

Addy sighed. Right he probably did not get it. Time to explain. "Old man here wants us to take Princess to Alabasta."

"Is that all? Sure," Luffy answered.

Addy slapped her face, "No not sure. First of all there are several problems with this. Let's start with the simplest one. Crocodile, the guy that wants them dead is a shichibukai whose bounty is worth 80 million Berries if it was still active."

"80 million!" Nami screeched. "That's four times Arlong bounty! Listen to Addy!"

"Second of all the place they want us to go is Alabasta," Addy continued. "Which is a DESERT KINGDOM! Now I hate deserts but perhaps more importantly Crocodile's Devil Fruit allows him to control sand. SAND!"

"So he must be pretty tough then," Luffy snickered. Addy sighed. She was making this seem more appealing by the second which was the opposite of her intention. Time to go for the killing blow.

"And finally," Addy growled. "We are talking about a princess here. A member of nobility. You may still have delusions about nobility but let me be clear about something. They are scum, who only desire to further their own goals and care nothing about other people, instead preferring to be worshiped like gods. There contempt, greed, and selfish desires know no bounds. They are disloyal monsters and this princess like all other nobles fall under this. We would be better to kill her off right now and let them find her body rather than carting her around Ocean."

"Not all nobles," Luffy stated simply.

Addy looked at him eyes wide, "Captain?" she wondered.

"Not all nobles," he stated again putting his hand on her wrist, the same one she was using to hold the whip. "Let's see how she is."

"Captain!" Addy was shaking with anger. "I know her kind. I know how they think. First chance she gets she will betray us. How do we know that telling us about Crocodile wasn't her entire plan anyway to make us take her?! How do we know that this rebellion isn't justified?!"

"We don't," he answered calmly. "We just have to trust!"

"TRUST?! Have you lost your mind?! I would never trust that wretch!"

"Then trust me, and let her go." The two of them stared at each other for a while the others staying out of it. Finally, Addy growled and recoiled her whip removing it from around Princess's neck.

"One move out of place and I will kill you," Addy snapped at Vivi placing the whip back on her hip.

"Addy!" Nami pleaded with her grabbing onto her shoulders.

"Captain's orders," Addy hissed. "Nothing I can do."

"I am ever grateful," Igaram said.

"Save your gratitude," Addy spat. "We don't want it or need it. Let's just put this stupid plan in motion."

"Then let us make our way to the river. I have a ship there waiting." The walk was done in relative Straw Hat silence. Luffy was bouncing up and down about meeting Crocodile, Nami was muttering about how they were all dead and Addy was glaring at the back of Princess's head who was walking beside Igaram and the chicken in front. Zoro was walking beside Addy and keeping an eye on her. Whether to make sure she was alright or that she didn't snap and kill Princess Addy wasn't fully sure. This was not going to be a fun trip.

Eventually they made it to the river where sure enough a sturdy looking ship was waiting. Well at least they were about to ditch one of the annoying people.

After some more musical notes from Igaram he spoke trying and failing to sound like the princess, "Now, then. I, Vivi, will leave from here."

Luffy started chuckling, "That's a perfect imitation, old guy!"

"Imitation of who?!" Zoro asked.

"I'm wondering that myself," Addy murmured. This entire idea was stupid.

Igaram held out his hand and spoke in his normal voice, "Now then, Princess. Please give me the Eternal Pose." Princess handed him a object that looked like an hour glass with an arrow floating around in it.

"Eternal Pose?" Nami wondered. She was leaning against a cliff still trying to hide herself.

"It's a Log Pose that is permanently set to one location and doesn't do all this adjusting to other magnetic fields garbage," Addy stated. "Essentially it only ever points to one island."

"You're going to use this to go to Alabasta?" Princess asked. No he is going to use it to make pancakes. What else is he going to use it for? Addy sighed. Hopefully the trip to Alabasta will be short.

"Vivi," Igaram said voice filled with concern. "Please take the indirect island-hoping route to Alabasta. I've not taken the path myself but it should only be two or three islands if you follow the Log." Igaram then looked at each of them though he glared at Addy. "Please take good care of the princess."

"Yeah!" Luffy announced which basically made it an order.

"Igaram," Vivi muttered still standing in from of Igaram. It looked like she was having a hard time saying goodbye.

"I expect it will be a harsh journey," Igaram said softly. "Be careful on your way." She held herself back from grabbing onto him. As much as Addy hated her she had to admit that the two of them had probably been through a lot. It could not have been easy to infiltrate the organization.

Princess held out her hand and he clasped it. Neither of them knew when they were going to see each other next. "You, too," Princess stated. Igaram then climbed into the ship and started sailing off, the ship slowing getting smaller as it got farther and farther from the coast.

"There he goes," Luffy said hands on the back of his head. "He was a funny old guy, to the very end!"

"He really is reliable," Princess responded.

It was at that exact moment that the ship blew up in a massive explosion, like a giant yellow fireball. Clouds of dust and smoke rose up into the sky turning everything red. Debris from the ship went scattering all across Ocean and Addy could feel the blast even from shore. Anything near that would have been completely incinerated. Everyone was looking at the explosion shocked except for Addy who had a smile on her face. This trip was going to be a nightmare but at least they were never going to see him again.

"That's impossible!" Princess shouted. "They're already after us?!"

Luffy turned around and picked up his hat which was blown off his head by the force of the explosion. Placing it back on his head he yelled loud enough for the entire town to hear. "He was a great person!"

"Nami!" Zoro bellowed getting her attention. "What's the Log say?!" He wanted them to get out of here now and to Addy that sounded like a pretty good idea.

"We're okay!" Nami responded. "It's stored up!"

"Bring her with us! We're setting sail!"

As Nami gathered up Princess, Addy ran with Zoro towards Merry, leading the way. Merry was probably in an absolute panic right now. She also heard Zoro order Luffy to go grab the other two. Right, Sanji and Usopp had slept through the entire thing.

Zoro and her continued to head towards the ship as Luffy broke off to get their stray crewmates. They ran together in silence, the only thing on their minds was Merry. At least that is what Addy thought until Zoro spoke. "Addy," he said. "You are not going to try and kill Vivi are you?"

"Captain's orders," she huffed out. "As much as I hate it I will make sure she gets to Alabasta as long as that is Captain's desire." Zoro only nodded in response but Addy got the message. It was a question of loyalty after all. If she did kill Princess than it would be basically going against Luffy and the crew. Essentially it was mutiny and she would be damned if she would let a noble lead her down that road. Besides there was also the promise she made to Riley and nothing in the entire world would make her break that. There was nothing however that said she couldn't try to convince Captain of the error of his ways.

" _Addy!_ " Merry yelled as soon as they got in range. " _What is going on?!"_

"I'll explain everything later," Addy said as she jumped on Merry. "When the others get here as well." Zoro went straight for the anchor while she made a beeline towards the helm. They had to get out of here now.

" _You better_ ," Merry stated. " _No excuses this time._ "

"Hey!" Luffy called up. "I brought 'em!"

"Get on!" Zoro responded. "We're ready to leave at any time!"

" _Sanji and Usopp look like garbage_ ," Merry murmured. " _What did you guys do?"_

"There was a large party okay and some of us may have taken it too far."

If Merry could she would roll her eyes and Addy swore she could hear Merry say something about what she was going to do with them.

" _Also who is the blue haired lady that Nami is talking too?"_

"Oh she is the princess that we are ferrying."

" _A princess?!"_ Merry practically squealed. " _I always wanted a member of royalty on board. I wonder what she is like_? _She has a great looking duck as well._ " Merry continued babbling on for a little bit while Addy grumbled. This was definitely going to be a long trip.

"Alright!" Luffy shouted. "Let's go!"

Addy grabbed onto the helm and guided Merry up the tributary that she sensed out. She felt as the sails unfurled and Merry glided across the water. Somehow Addy felt that everything was going to be okay. She would overcome all this just like every other challenge she had come across.

"Hey!" Usopp exclaimed. "The ship is leaving!"

"Wait!" Sanji shouted. "Let's stay just one more night!"

"Yeah!"

"This town is great! And the girls are cute!"

"There's no telling when we'll have this much fun again!"

"Let's take it easy! We are pirates!"

"Plus it's not even morning yet!"

There was a large thumping noise coming from outside and Zoro yelling for someone to explain it to them. Nami must have gotten to them. Sure enough Nami just yelled that she did. Addy sighed. Sounded like she was going to have to fill in more than a few holes.

" _Addy careful there is fog outside,_ " Merry said.

"Yeah I sensed it out a little bit ago." The fact that she was feeling better was a major clue. "Should be no trouble."

"Especially not for you," a voice Addy didn't recognize spoke. Addy looked around a saw a woman with long black hair, beautiful blue eyes and tanned skin sitting at the table. Wearing a rather skimpy purple shirt and skirt combination, a purple wide brimmed hat and purple boots, Addy could feel strength coming off of her. She was someone not to be messed with though that did not mean Addy wouldn't try. She placed one hand on her whip before she heard a tsk noise.

"You really shouldn't move from the helm. There are dangerous rocks ahead. As I am sure you already know considering who you are," the woman said.

Addy gave out a small smile and placed her hand back on the helm though inside she was a ball of nerves. She expected to run into people who knew what she was on the Grand Line. Just not this soon. The woman was right however. If Addy left the helm death by rocks became way more likely. "Well you seem to know exactly who I am and I highly doubt you are going to give me your name." The woman let out a small chuckle. "So why don't you introduce yourself to the rest of the crew and they will sort you out. I particularly don't like strangers on Merry but I assume you are here to kill Princess so I will let it slide."

" _Sorry Addy,"_ Merry whimpered. " _I thought she was part of the princess rescuing efforts."_

 _"_ It's alright Merry," Addy stated softly. "I did not explain the situation fully."

"So the rumors are true," the woman murmured. "Your kind can talk to ships."

"If you don't mind," Addy said. "Could you keep who I am between us. The rest of the crew has yet to know and I don't plan on ever letting them know."

The woman gave her a sly smile and Addy felt increasingly nervous" Only if you answer a question. This crew of yours, are they good?"

"Would I be here if they weren't?"

The woman laughed and got up heading towards the door. "I supposed you wouldn't be." She opened the door and closed it softly and is what like she was never even hear.

"Who're you?!" Zoro shouted. "Addy!"

"Is fine," the woman stated louder than she would normally talk, probably so Addy could hear her. "She is on the helm making sure you don't collide this nice ship with any rocks."

"If you're lying!" Zoro roared most likely drawing out his swords.

"I know!" Nami shouted. "Addy whatever happens stay on the helm! We can take care of her but only you can get us out of here!"

"Understood!" Addy shouted. Orders like that from the navigator were basically like orders from Captain himself.

"Y-You're!" Princess finally managed to cough out. There was a brief pause before Addy heard her shout out, "You killed Igaram!" Addy needed to send her a fruit basket then. A massive one.

"Who cares about that?!" Luffy shouted. Addy loved her Captain. What did she do to deserve him? "What're are you doing on this ship?! Who are you?!"

"What are you doing here Miss All Sunday!" Princess yelled. Addy will also get Sanji to make her a cake. Two cakes if she manages to kill Princess. Or at least a proper funeral.

"Miss All Sunday?!" Nami called out. "What number is she partner too?!"

"She's partner of Mr. 0, the boss!" Why were they still calling him the boss? They all knew he was Crocodile.

"Crocodile?!" Nami must be freaking out at this point.

"We found out who he is by following her!" Okay maybe Princess has some talent after all.

"More accurately," Miss All Sunday spoke, loud enough even for Addy to hear. "I allowed you to follow me." Never mind then. Princess was still garbage at espionage.

"Oh!" Luffy announced. "Then she is good!"

"I know that!" Princess shouted. Sure you did. "You're also the one who told him we discovered his identity, right?" Well who else would tell him if nobody knew who he was?

"Correct," Miss All Sunday spoke.

"So, she really is bad!" Luffy grumbled.

"Pipe down, you!" Zoro chastised.

"What exactly is it you're trying to do?!" Vivi yelled. Hopefully kill you.

"Good question," Miss All Sunday replied. "You were all so intent and serious that I found myself helping out. The idea of a princess trying her hardest to save her kingdom while making herself an enemy of Baroque Works. It was just so ridiculous, you see."

"Don't you mock me!"

She felt as Usopp and Sanji got up and moved so that they were right next to Miss All Sunday. Right they were still on the upper deck.

" _Usopp has drawn his slingshot,_ " Merry commented. " _And Sanji is hold a gun to her head?"_

"Maybe he has a concussion," Addy stated. "I will check him out later." Addy had the feeling everyone else drew weapons as well and she wished she could be out there with them. But once again her duties confined her to the helm. She growled and tightened her grip. Why did she have to be so useless?

"Hey! Sanji!" she heard Usopp say. "You do realize what you're doing?!"

"No, not really," he answered though Addy could barely hear him. "I just sensed that my beloved Miss Wednesday is in danger."

"I'd appreciate if you didn't point such dangerous objects at me," All Sunday spoke. Addy thought she heard the clattering of things falling onto the ground and felt as Sanji and Usopp flew off the deck and crashed into the lower one. Just what was her Devil Fruit power? Everyone else was thinking along the same lines. This could get bad quickly.

"Upon closer look, you're actually a beautiful lady!" Sanji announced. He only now managed to figure it out?

"Now, now," All Sunday said. "Don't be so hasty. I haven't been given any orders. I have no reason to fight, particularly with your helmsman on board." There was a brief pause before she started speaking again. "So you're the straw hat captain I've heard so much about. Monkey D. Luffy."

"Hey you!" Luffy was screaming. "Gimme my hat back! Are you trying to start a fight?!"

"I deem you an enemy!" Usopp added in. "Leave this instant!"

"How unlucky you are," All Sunday stated. "You people who picked up a princess who Baroque Works is out to kill. And a princess being protected by a mere handful of pirates. But what's even unluckier is the course your Log Pose indicates. The name of the next island is Little Garden. We don't even need to do anything, you'll be wiped out long before you can even reach Alabasta."

"Will not!" Luffy shouted. "Gimme my hat back!"

"You wish! You big dummy!" Usopped chimed in.

"Do you think letting yourself get wiped out is a bit foolish?" All Sunday asked.

"Probably," Addy said finally stepping outside and joining the others. She could see them scattered all across the lower deck. They had finally cleared the rocks and it was straight sailing until they reached Ocean. Grabbing the straw hat off of All Sunday's head she tossed it to Luffy who eagerly grabbed it. She then leaned against the wall and crossed her arms. "But that doesn't mean we will be. Now if you would kindly get off Merry. I don't want to go around spilling blood just yet."

All Sunday chuckled and tossed something towards Princess. "Don't worry about that. I don't want to get in a fight with you either. Just something to make the journey a little easier. You can skip past Little Garden with the Eternal Pose I gave the princess. It points to an island just before Alabasta. None of our employees know that course so no one will chase you."

"What?" Nami asked. "She's a good person?"

"Do you owe my people a debt of some kind?" Addy wondered. That might explain her behavior.

"I don't actually. This is of my own volition," All Sunday answered which made this even stranger.

"Why are you giving this to us?!" Princess asked.

"It's a trap, isn't it?" Zoro questioned.

"Is it, now?" All Sunday answered.

Luffy started walking over to Princess. Whatever they were going to do it was his decision to make. "Who cares about that?!" he shouted grabbing the Eternal Pose out of Princess's hands and crushing it in his own. Nami kicked him in the face sending him flying across deck.

"Are you an, idiot?!" she yelled at him. "She just went out of her way to show us a nicer course! What if she's actually a good person?!" She pointed towards All Sunday with that remark.

Luffy looked up towards All Sunday from the floor of the deck and stated clearly, "You're not the one who decides this ship's course!"

A moment of understanding came between them and All Sunday lowered her head. "I see. That's too bad."

"She blew up the old tube guy hair guy, so I hate her!"

She got off the banister and started walking across the deck. "I don't hate high spirited people. If you survive let's meet again."

"No!"

With that she jumped off the side of Merry onto a craft that was waiting for her. It seemed to be attached to a giant turtle. Zoro and Usopp went over to the edge of the ship to take a look at what she was riding on.

"W-What is that?!" Zoro asked astonished.

"Don't tell me it's a Sea King!" Usopp yelled.

"A turtle!" They all exclaimed except for Addy. She had seen a few of them before.

"What a huge turtle," Luffy remarked.

At that moment Princess collapsed onto the deck. "I can't tell what that woman is thinking one bit!"

"Then there's no point in thinking about it," Nami suggested.

"We already got someone like that on this ship, anyway," Zoro pointed out.

"Hey!" Usopp shouted. "Explain what's going on! None of this makes any sense!"

" _Agreed_ ," Merry said.

"Oh, Miss Wednesday" Sanji proclaimed. "Don't tell me you've joined the crew?!"

"Hey!" Usopp shouted again. "Explain already!" He looked around and spotted the chicken who was quietly sitting on deck this entire time. "Whoa! There's an ostrich on board!" Said ostrich squawked. "C'mon, what's going on?!" "

"Is it for food?" Sanji asked. The thing squawked again and Addy realized it was going to get very annoying, very quickly.

"Explain, what's going on!"

Addy jumped down onto the lower deck and sighed. The sun was just starting to rise as well. "Alright so here is how it is."

…

"I see," Sanji said taking in a smoke after Addy explained what was going on. "It's too bad I missed out on it, but there's still opportunity for me to shine, too. Don't worry. Now that this sleeping prince has awoken, your safety is guaranteed!"

"Whoa!" Usopp sighed sounding immensely relived. "Good thing I slept through it!"

"Nami dear, Addy sweet. Jealous any?" Sanji asked.

"Nope," Nami answered curtly.

"Not at all," Addy replied. She saw Zoro smile out of the corner of her eye. Looks like everything is good between them.

"Is it really alright for me to be on this ship?" Princess asked. "I'll only trouble you all."

"Did you really just ask that?" Addy answered before getting a death glare from Nami.

"What are you talking about?!" Nami asked walking right up to her. "We know who you are now!" She poked Princess in the forehead. "If you didn't want to trouble us, you should've done so from the start!"

"I'm sorry."

"Right, Luffy?"

"Yeah!" he answered. "I'm hungry!"

"For now, looks like our next destination is set," Zoro chimed in.

"Little Garden, huh?" Sanji mused.

"H-Hey now!" Usopp piped up. "Will we be alright there?!"

"Who knows," Luffy answered. "Let's go, men!"

"Yeah!" They all answered. Addy wasn't sure where the future was going to lead but as she made her way to the helm with the sounds of the crew around her, even with the unwanted guests, everything was going to work out.

* * *

Jag: I almost feel bad for all the suffering Addy is going to have in Alabasta. Her black/white attitude is going to lead her down some interesting paths in the near future. Addy and Zoro are also going to go in an interesting direction.

Yuuzhan Vong Jedi: I love skeleton jokes when appropriate and at that moment I just had to. If I didn't have Addy side with Baroque Works I feel like I would be betraying her character and this is her story after all. I will always try and avoid making her a Mary Sue character because I feel like that would be a great disservice to not only Addy but everyone else reading this.


	75. Travelogues Part 1

Author's Note:

I'm not actually sure if this chapter is a disaster or not. Still getting back into the writing style. Regardless I want to thank my sister for editing it since I did not have the time. As always please review and let me know what you think.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

It was a calm and peaceful day out on Ocean. The waves weren't making a fuss, there was barely a cloud in a sky. Wind was blowing into the sails despite some interrupts that occurred earlier that morning. Indeed, one day out of Whiskey Peak and things were going well. As a matter fact, the only problem seemed to be the ship itself, who seemed convinced that having a princess on board was a good thing.

" _Look I get that you seem to have some sort of vendetta against nobles, but Vivi hasn't done anything to hurt us,"_ Merry stated in a forced calm trying to keep her tone even. Addy took a shot out of her flask. She was at the helm with the pole in a death grip. She had been feeling ill since they left Whiskey Peak. Heart going erratic, migraines, stiffness, loss of appetite, dizziness, and trembles. It did nothing to help her attitude.

"Oh you mean besides the fact that she's the one who leaked Crocodile's name, which is the entire reason they are hunting us," Addy snapped. "The only way to get ourselves out of this situation would be to hand her over."

" _You're talking about mutiny_!"

"I'm talking about a technicality. All we said was that we would get her to Alabasta. There was nothing in that deal that said we couldn't hand her over to Baroque Works once we got there. But we're going in circles here. You never answered my original question."

" _Because it's a stupid question, we don't need a backup helmsman! We don't have a backup navigator, or sniper, or cook. We have one because that is all we need! Having a backup, it's like you're expecting something to happen_."

"This isn't negotiable Merry. Who do you want?" The two of them had been having this conversation since early morning on account of Addy's inability to sleep. Insomnia. Just another one of her symptoms. Merry was doing everything to distract Addy from this path but she was unmoved. This needed to be done.

Finally, Merry spat out an answer, " _Usopp_. _If it has to be anybody let it be Usopp._ "

"I thought you'd say that." Addy sighed. "Which is why I asked him to come in sometime this after noon."

 _"Wait, what? Can we talk about-"_

"Hey, Addy" Usopp said coming into the room. "You need something fixed?"

"Actually I was wondering something," Addy asked, taking her hands off the helm. "How would you like to learn how to pilot Merry?"

" _You haven't even asked him?!"_ Merry asked exasperated.

"Are you serious?" Usopp asked. He seemed rather excited.

"She was a gift from your girlfriend." That caused Usopp to start stammering and Addy could see a faint blush appear on his cheeks. "You should be able to make her sail."

"Okay so how do I…" Addy beckoned him to come forward and grabbed his hands putting them onto of the helm underneath her own.

"Merry is a sensitive ship-"

" _Go jump off the edge!"_ Merry snapped.

"-when it comes to guiding her. You don't need a lot of pressure to change her course." Addy gently moved her hands showing Usopp how it's done. "That's true even when making a sharp directional change. You got to ease into it and shift your body with the turn." She guided Usopp through the movements having Merry go slightly off course before returning her to the previous path. "Now, always remember the one rule."

"Which is?" Usopp asked slightly nervous.

"Always listen to the navigator. Even if what they are saying sounds completely insane." Addy removed her hands from Usopp's. "I think you're ready."

"What?!" both Usopp and Merry exclaimed at the same time.

"The best practice comes from experience. If anything goes wrong I will be right on deck ready to take over," she said walking towards the door. "Have fun."

"Adddddddddddddddy," Usopp whined as she shut the door leaving him at the helm. Maybe it wasn't the smartest move, but he needed to learn quickly.

" _I'm not talking to you,_ " Merry stated.

"I believe you just did," Addy said, going towards the door. Merry declined to respond and Addy sighed. She would understand later. At least Addy hoped she would. She took another shot from her flask. Usopp's lessons would continue as long as Addy would be able to give them. She sighed again after opening the door when she saw Princess and Nami standing right outside. Of course they were. They had only known each other for a day or so and already they were best friends. At that moment Wind decided to cut out on them. So they weren't going to go anywhere quickly.

"Oh!" Nami exclaimed. "The wind stopped again."

"Usopp, go back to whatever you were doing before," Addy stated. "Wind decided to quit on us."

"Again?" Usopp asked coming out. It had happened a couple of times already. Addy wondered if Princess did something to anger Wind. She wouldn't be surprised.

"Just when we should be rushing straight for Little Garden, too," Nami uttered. Addy grumbled about it as well. The longer it took them to get to Alabasta, the longer Princess was onboard the ship. A fact that Addy was very unhappy about. "We're temporarily stopped again."

"Time is running out as we speak, too," Princess stated. Addy walked away at that point not wanting to listen to any of her drivel. Perhaps Zoro was available right now. She walked down to the lower deck to look for him. Zoro was always available, technically, it just depended on how much work it would be to wake him from his nap. For Addy, it didn't take much effort at all.

"Alright!" Luffy announced. "Let's fish! Fish!" The chicken was hanging out with him and Usopp had already gotten out his fishing rod and was sitting on the edge, line dangling into the water.

"Hey," Sanji called out. "Anyone seen the bait?" He was holding up a bucket and Luffy looked at it.

"Bait?" Luffy questioned. "Oh, the stuff in there? I ate it."

"You ate it?" Sanji exclaimed. "Those were bugs, you know!"

Luffy grabbed the last one out of the bucket. "Yeah? They tasted good!"

"Don't eat stuff like that!" Usopp shouted, his eyes bugging out of his head.

"Now what?!" Sanji added in. "We can't fish now that you've eaten our bait!"

"Use this, then!" Luffy stated holding up what appeared to be a sponge.

"We can't catch anything with that!"

"Really? We can't? Then how about him?" Luffy pointed towards the chicken.

"Oh. That sounds okay." The chicken immediately started squawking up a storm and running around the deck. Sanji and Luffy gave chase but they were somehow unable to catch him. Addy rolled her eyes. She would go fishing once it got dark. It's not like she would be able to sleep anyway. All this commotion also woke up Zoro who was sleeping against the railing.

"Dammit, you guys!" He shouted his face bright red. "Knock it off!" Addy made her way over to him and sat down next to him leaning her head against his shoulder. Zoro was nice and warm and right now she was feeling rather chilly despite the sun. He glanced at her and put his arm around her before nodding off to sleep again. Addy watched the antics of the crew.

Luffy actually managed to grab ahold of the chicken, but that didn't slow it down. Sanji was right on its tail and Usopp was doing his best to stay out of the way.

"But can't you guys be a little worried, at least?!" Nami shouted.

Luffy had managed to finally subdue the chicken. "Worried about what?" he asked.

"Oh!" Sanji exclaimed going heart eyed. "Nami dear is lovely when she's angry, too!"

"Honestly, now!" Nami said frustrated running a hand through her hair. Addy thought she would be used to the crew's antics at this point. This was relatively tame compared to some of the other stuff they got into. At least nothing has exploded so far today. Nami and Princess started talking and Addy tuned them out preferring to focus on anything else.

"You forgot one," Zoro said. Apparently he was paying attention to their conversation. "A navy freak who wields a huge axe hand."

"Oh! Axe-hand Morgan!" The conversation drifted again and Addy took a shot out of her flask. Everything started going slightly blurry. So she finally made it to tipsy then. If she kept at it she could be drunk by evening. Usopp had also managed to get into capturing the chicken and it was actually pretty funny to watch three guys struggle with a massive bird.

"Oh!" Luffy exclaimed. "The old-axe hand guy! That reminds me, I wonder what that guy with him is up to now." Luffy's pause allowed the chicken to go free and it scrambled to the other side of the deck. "I wonder if he's still at that navy base." The wind started blowing in the sails again. Well at least they were on the move.

"Who's _he_?" Nami asked. Addy was curious as well. Luffy really didn't talk about the past at all.

"Yeah! His name's Coby! He's my friend! He joined the Navy after we defeated old-axe hand guy!" Addy groaned. Of course Luffy would have a friend in the Navy. Though they were friends before the kid joined the Navy. Perhaps things would change with time.

"Anyway!" Nami announced. "We are moving again! Addy get back on the helm!"

"Not me!" Addy called back. "Usopp's the one in control! So you better get him on the helm before we end up off course and in some dangerous part of Ocean!" That got him scurrying to the helm though the rest of the crew was looking at her oddly. Save for Luffy, who went back to playing with the chicken.

"Addy, you alright?" Zoro asked concerned.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I just figured that it might be a good idea to have a backup. You never know what might happen."

"But then it's like you expect something bad to happen," Nami stated. "We don't have a backup of anyone else."

" _Which is exactly what I said,_ " Merry added in. " _It's like you're expecting to die at some point."_

"Look," Addy hissed. "I'm the helmsman and it is my call. Unless that has changed."

"Usopp's still inexperienced," Nami pointed out.

"Which is why I'm training him in the first place. He was the helmsman before I came on board and he's done a good job when I haven't been at the helm. Some fine tuning and he should make a decent one."

"But not the best," Luffy, finally joining the conversation. "That's you."

"I'm one of the best," Addy replied. "But that doesn't really-"

"A Pirate King's crew is the best," he stated simply. "Nothing is going to happen to any of you. Because you are my nakama."

Addy looked at him and he looked at her. The message was clear. She gave a small smile. "Understood Captain. But I would still like to train Usopp. I'm getting kinda jealous since you get into all the fights while I'm stuck to the helm." That broke the tension as Luffy gave one of his big smiles and nodded. The rest of the crew broke into various activities while Zoro pulled her closer.

"You could have said that in the first place," he mumbled.

"Your point being?" she replied. "I have my reasons."

"I know you do." He paused for a moment as if he wanted to ask her something. She felt him get even warmer and Addy looked up to see a blush on his face.

"You alright there?" Addy asked teasing him. She started tracing her fingers across his arm and his chest.

"Yeah, I'm not feeling so well," he said, his face an interesting shade of pink. It was somewhat amusing. Ever since the first time they started sleeping together he had been pretty calm, but ever since that night on the roof stop in Whiskey Peak, he'd gone back to the stammering mess he was before they broke the ice. Addy wasn't exactly sure why he was acting like this but it was humorous.

"That's doesn't seem good," Addy answered. "Perhaps I should check you out. The crow's nest seems like the perfect place. Maybe later tonight." He couldn't even make a sound, just open and closed his mouth. She frowned and looked at him holding her hand to his forehead and looked at him straight in the eyes. His pupils were dilated and he seemed fidgety. She placed her fingers against his neck to check his pulse, his heart was racing and his breathing was accelerated. Perhaps he was sick. "Are you alright?"

"Fine, probably just need more sleep," he stammered. "I've never been sick before and I'm not now."

"Then get some," Addy said running her hand through his hair. This was concerning. She knew exactly what was wrong with her but if something was wrong with Zoro...

Addy sighed and ran a hand through her own hair. They couldn't afford for him to be sick. Hopefully it was nothing serious and Zoro seemed alright this morning when he was running around with the others this morning. She took a shot out of her flask and felt a wave of nausea overcome her. Yeah, she knew exactly what was wrong with her.

Stepping away from Zoro she walked over to the railing and gazed out over Ocean. The calm waving lapping at the ship and nothing but blue skies and water for miles. How many more chances will she get to see this sight? She closed her eyes and breathed in the smell of the sea but it did nothing to bring relief to her symptoms.

"Addy-sweet," she heard Sanji exclaim. She opened her eyes and saw that he was standing right next to her holding out a plate of what looked like fish tartare. Addy also saw Zoro giving him the death glare though Sanji didn't appear to notice. She took the plate from Sanji despite not really wanting to eat. He'd make a fuss if she didn't. Giving him a small smile, he launched into a barrage of compliments before dancing off towards Nami and Princess.

Addy frowned as she looked at Princess and put her plate down. One thing was for certain: she would _not_ relax until she was sure that the princess problem was taken care of. Addy glanced over the rest of her crew who were out on deck. She'd make sure that they'd be okay. She took a bite of the fish and washed it down with the rum in her flask before placing the plate down and grabbing ahold of her locket. Turning it around in her hands she felt her eyelids start to droop and her heart grew heavy. They had to be okay.

* * *

Jag: I think the reason they didn't take her seriously is because in my mind once Luffy made up his mind know one would. I can't see Nami wanting to kill her, Luffy definitely not and Zoro could potentially but after Luffy's order it sort of becomes void. Don't worry though Addy's idea hasn't completely disappeared. As for the use of Sabo, the way I see it is that Luffy sees the potential in people so for him nobles can be really good people because Sabo showed him that. Addy doesn't see things like that instead lumping them all together.

CandyPrince3408: I have thought about doing other canonxoc pairings and I am still debating on it. As you noticed there is one already with SarabixWhitebeard. As for whether Whitebeard is Addy's father well that answer is actually rather complicated as will be revealed in the future. Suffice it to say Sarabi and Whitebeard are married and there will be some canon character pairings as well as Addy and Zoro.


	76. Travelogues Part 2

Author's Note:

So I decided to spoil you guys and give you another chapter. Don't worry there will be another update on Wednesday. As you can probably tell this fic is taking a darker turn. We might not reach happy fun land for awhile. I also went back and made some edits to the last part of Hidden Appearances. Nothing major just some details that needed to be elaborated. As always please review and let me know what you think.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

It had been another day since they left Whiskey Peak and Addy felt like they weren't getting anywhere. She was at the helm hoping it would help her relax. That and the smell of Sanji's coo king. Despite the fact that she couldn't eat most of it, the smell was always divine. Unfortunately, Nami and Princess also decided to settle in the room as Princess had something to discuss with Nami that Addy was doing her best to ignore completely.

" _Addy you are doing okay right?"_ Merry asked.

"I thought you were not talking to me," Addy whispered taking another shot. It went down smooth like all the others.

" _I changed my mind. Something is clearly going on with you. Did you and Zoro have a fight or something?"_

"No its just," Addy sighed. "It's complicated."

" _Does it have anything to do with Vivi being on board because you have to get over that. She is a nice girl and a member of royalty. It is a great honor that we are the ones guiding her home. How many other ships can say that they have had a princess on board?_ "

"Hopefully very few because no decent ship should have to sully themselves by carrying a princess."

"Ah!" Usopp exclaimed. "I can see… a million Little Garden residents are out to greet Captain Usopp!"

Merry chuckled, " _Sounds like he is having fun_."

"Yeah," Addy said letting go of the helm. Wandering back on deck she sighed and looked at the crew. There was no reason for her to be stuck behind the helm today. Besides if she could avoid being in the same room as Princess she would. Usopp was looking out of a telescope across Ocean, sitting beside the orange grove. The chicken was right beside the doorway that Addy stepped out of looking up at him.

"The girls' high pitched cheers. Kisses being blown all over the place," Usopp uttered. "Really, I'm so popular that it's almost a crime. Don't fall in love with me, Mademoiselle. It's not my fault if you get burned."

"Are you stupid or what?" Zoro asked eating an apple walking along the lower deck.

"Stupid? Hey, I heard that, Zoro!" he said slamming his foot into the helm room.

Addy laughed, "Don't mind him. You have a very active imagination Usopp."

"See," Usopp exclaimed. "At least someone appreciates me." Addy rolled her eyes fondly and looked at Zoro. He seemed better than he was when she last saw him. Perhaps all he really needed was a nap.

"Cut it out!" she heard Nami say. "Keep it down, you guys!"

"Like that ever happens," Addy said jumping down to the lower deck. Since everyone except Zoro seemed preoccupied with something might as go bug him. Luffy was busy drawing water for Nami and Usopp looked like he was raiding the kitchen. They might be able to start their rendezvous in the crows nest a little earlier than she thought. That was until she heard what sounded like machinery breaking in the water drawing room.

"Don't tell me Captain just-" Addy asked.

" _Broke the water drawing contraption? Yeah." Merry stated._

"Oh Nami is going to love hearing that. Thank Ocean we have a spare."

"Ahh that scared me," Luffy said coming out of the room where they drew water from which was located right underneath the stairs. "That thing is dangerous!"

"What? What happened?" Nami asked leaning over the balcony. Sanji, Usopp, and Princess had all come out as well.

"Ahh!" Usopp exclaimed. "Luffy! Why'd you have to break it?!" Addy walked up and looked at what was once the water drawer thing. It was now a pile of twisted metal. Usopp jumped down so that he was standing right next to Luffy.

"I was just trying to draw the water faster."

Usopp pushed Luffy slightly out of the way and looked over the broken machine. "Oh, boy. The belt's been burned and broken." He started tinkering with it and Addy could hear the sounds of metal being messed with. Thank Ocean Usopp was a handy man. Nami had also jumped down and was standing where Usopp was a moment ago.

"Yeah. I wonder how that happened."

Nami punched him in the head after that comment making it swing forward. "It's because of your ridiculous strength!" Nami uttered. "Geez."

"Can't it be fixed?" Princess asked. Addy was half tempted to take the thing and throw it in Ocean just to spite her. And if she was feeling better she would have.

"Well, we have to get the materials from somewhere," Usopp mentioned.

"In any case, I probably shouldn't ask him to do anything," Nami stated.

"I'm surprised you asked him in the first place," Addy said. "At this point you really should know better."

"True, very true. Usopp, could you get water from the other water-drawing machine for me?"

Usopp was dusting off his hands, "Yeah," he uttered only paying half attention before he realized he agreed to Nami's request. "What? Nami! Have you ever considered doing it yourself?!"

"I smell food!" Luffy stated. Well there goes his one track mind.

"And you," Usopp yelled at him. "Show a little more remorse!"

"I'm sorry. But there's another one so what's the big deal?"

"Shut up!" Zoro yelled at them effectively ending the conversation. "I can't sleep."

"You better listen to him," Addy said. "We don't want to deal with a cranky Zoro. Or Nami for that matter."

Usopp grumbled but complied going to fetch water from the other machine. Luffy went straight for the kitchen to look for food while Addy settled next to Zoro.

"Hey you feeling better?" she asked him.

"Y-yeah," he answered his cheeks going red. That was odd. He seemed fine until a minute ago.

" _Aw look at the two of you_ ," Merry cooed. " _You are so cute together_."

"Addy, Zoro, snack time!" Nami called out. Addy sighed. Ever since Princess got on the ship Addy had tried to avoid her as much as possible, including eating in the same room with her. Unfortunately, Sanji had the rule where they all had to eat together and if one of them was missing than food would not come. Meaning that regardless of what Addy wanted she had to at least eat with Princess otherwise Luffy might start devouring the ship.

The two of the walked into the room and sat at the table, Addy sitting as far away as she could from Princess with Zoro sitting next to her. Sanji placed what looked like grilled shrimp in front of her and she started eating the quickly wanting to get out of this room as soon as possible despite the lack of appetite.

"At any rate, I can't believe they deliver the morning paper at snack time," Nami murmured.

"That can't be helped since we're traveling in the Grand Line," Princess pointed out. "We should feel lucky that we still can get news."

"I guess you're right." Nami chuckled.

"Well that and the newspaper system is run by the World Government and they are about as reliable as a compass out here," Addy added in finished with her shrimp.

"The World Government serves to protect everyone," Princess pointed out.

Addy laughed. "Of course you would say that. You're part of the system. A system that's corrupt to its very core."

"They promote stability and peace!"

"They suppress or ignore the rights of people in order to maintain their own immoral sense of justice! And you help them do it!" Both of them were standing up at the table glaring daggers at each other. Addy had one hand on her whip and she could see Princess going for her weapon. Princess would have to make the first move, that way when Addy killed her she could claim self-defense.

" _Addy!"_ Merry exclaimed. " _That's a princess. A member of royalty._ "

"Like that's going to stop me," Addy said under her breath. "If anything that's encouraging my actions."

"I'm not going to fight you," Princess stated sitting back down at the table. Addy glared at her and did the same. Nothing she could do unless she attacked first. "Nami, did something catch your eye?"

"What?" Nami proclaimed. "Ah, no, not really." She flipped the page of the newspaper. Well she was clearly lying.

"I see."

"Ah!" Luffy uttered mouth full of food. He leaned across the table and looked at the newspaper.

"Wh-what is it?" Nami asked startled.

"Here! Zoro, look!" Luffy pointed at a picture.

"Hm," he mumbled looking up from his tea.

"What? This is just a picture of the Navy," Nami pointed out.

"Yeah, but the guy in this picture isn't just anyone," Luffy said.

"Hm?" Zoro stated looking a little startled. "Hey, it's Coby!"

"The guy you mentioned yesterday?" Addy asked. Zoro nodded.

"See?!" Luffy exclaimed.

"He's the friend you were talking about the other day?" Nami remarked.

"Yep! So what does it say?" Luffy had a bright smile on his face.

"What does it say? Let's see…. Vice-Admiral Garp's warship has arrived at Navy headquarters." If Addy didn't know better she swore she saw Luffy flinch at that name but there was no way that Luffy knew Garp. Out of all the marines Garp might be the only decent one. He occasionally met with Addy's mother casually and Addy got to know him through her. He actually had a decent moral code and actually stuck by his words unless the Navy ordered him to do so. Even then he found a way to compromise between orders and his honor. Addy would even go so far and say that he was a good man.

"The picture was taken right after they crossed over Reverse Mountain," Nami continued.

"Really?" Addy asked slightly confused.

"That's what it says," Nami answered. Odd since Marine warships were covered with seastone they could usually make it through the Calm Belt with little trouble. Perhaps there was another reason they took the Reverse Mountain route. "Just as expected, Vice-Admiral Garp had a relaxed, imposing look; however, there were some young marines whose faces were frozen with fear."

"Whoa," Luffy stated. "So Coby has entered the Grand Line."

"It said Navy Headquarters," Zoro pointed out. "Not so bad."

"No matter what people say, he's a man who'll be a Navy mayor."

"Why would he want to become a mayor? Officer! A Navy officer!"

"Yeah, that's the one. I see…. So he's trying hard, too."

"A shame then that he had to go off a join the Marines," Addy said. "He'll probably be brainwashed into believing the World Government are the good guys. After all they are only puppets, dancing to the World Government's tune."

"The Marines protect people," Princess said.

"Is that what you tell yourself to sleep at night?" Addy snarled. "Because a lie is a lie no matter how many people believe that it is true. The Marines don't protect people; they subjugate them under the World Government's orders."

"How would you know?!"

"Because I have seen them do it! Maybe if you ever came out of your palace and actually spent any amount of time with your people you would realize this! But alas that would actually require you giving a damn about the people you pretend to serve!" She could see Princess shaking with anger grasping her fists tightly. Addy hit a soft point though she wasn't exactly sure what, otherwise she would use it the next time they had their little talks.

"You- you," Princess stammered. "Don't know what you are talking about."

"I don't do I? Well please let me elaborate then. I can tell you exactly how…"

" _Addy enough,_ " Merry chided. " _You're not going to get anything going down that road. You have already hurt her feelings. What more do you want to do?"_ Addy snapped her mouth shut and walked out of the room. Merry was right, there was no point in wasting time talking to her.

She climbed up into the crows nest and spent most of the day looking out over Ocean and drinking from her flask, the only time she came down was for dinner which she ate as quickly as she could before heading back up. Addy was grateful the rest of her crew gave her the space she needed. She watched as the sunset from the crow's nest holding the empty flask at her side and grasping her locket with her other hand. The stars were starting to come out.

" _I don't know what is going on with you,_ " Merry said softly. " _You don't seem like yourself and training Usopp and everything with Vivi. Like I know how you feel about nobles but you are taking it several steps too far. And you seem to be distancing yourself from the crew as well. I don't know what's-_

"Merry I am dying," Addy stated. The silence that followed was deathly. Despite the fact that they were in a summer area the very air seemed to grow cold.

" _What?_ " Merry asked softly. " _Why?_ " Addy held up the empty flask and shook it in her hand. Merry voice grew angry. " _How long have you known_?!"

"I figured it out after Whiskey Peak," Addy replied. "After swimming in Ocean didn't help. I can feel my body starting to shut down. Apparently I have drunk too much for even my body to handle. It won't be long now. A week give or take a few days. Depends on how much I drink."

" _Then why don't you stop_?!"

"Because if I stop the memories come back!" Addy shouted. She hoped the rest of the crew didn't over hear. No one came rushing up so Addy assumed they didn't. "The drinking keeps them at bay. Helps me to forget and to fill the gaping hole that's in my chest."

" _What could be so bad that you are willing to drink yourself to death in order to forget_?!"

"My Soul." Addy clutched her locket even tighter. "Not a day goes by that I don't miss her, that I wish I had died with her."

" _Addy_ ," Merry said softly. " _I'm so sorry_."

"I can't live without her Merry," Addy sobbed. "Not without the alcohol to dull the pain. Without it I just feel so empty, so incomplete. Completely and totally alone."

" _Maybe if you tell the other's-_ "

"What? That I am dying because I'm not strong enough. That I'm too weak to continue without having enough alcohol in my body to cause most people to be black out drunk. Is that what you want me to tell them?" Addy shook her head, her entire body trembling. "I can't do that. I can't hurt them like that. All I can do is try to point out the evils of nobility Maybe convince they to dump Princess before it is too late."

" _Addy….."_ It sounded as if she was crying. " _What are we going to do without you? Losing you it will destroy us_."

"I'm not that valuable. You'll cope. It will hurt for a while but you all can recover given time. Move on with your lives. It will be hardest on you but the rest of them are human. Eventually I'll become nothing more than a distant memory."

" _That's not_ …."

"That's exactly what is going to happen and there is nothing that is going to change it. This adventure on Little Garden is going to be my last and I want to make the best use of the time I have left." Addy wiped away the tears that formed in her eyes. "Can you help me do that? Please?"

There was a long pause and Addy was holding her breath before Merry finally spoke. "If that is what you want. But don't expect me to stop trying to dissuade you."

Addy gave a small smile. "I wouldn't expect anything less."

* * *

Jag: You actually nailed exactly what is wrong with Zoro. He has sort of fallen in love but because he is a bit of a moron about it, he doesn't actually know that yet. After this chapter you also figured out the need for a back up helmsman. Addy is in a tough spot. I always thought of Merry as Addy's foil and despite the contrasting personalities they get along well.

guisniperman: I just realized now that the symptoms of alcoholism and pregnancy can be similar but I have also changed how its affecting Addy because she isn't human alcohol affects her different and has much more dangerous consequences.

Yuuzhan Vong Jedi: I made the changes that you recommended. Thanks for those. I love writing the interactions between Merry and Addy. They work so well together as characters. Also the crew basically figured out she wasn't human after they saw that she could breath underwater. I have forgotten if I have outright stated it. Perhaps that's a conversation Addy and Vivi will have. Yeah Addy does have the title thing going on. Expect more of it in the future. Zoro and Addy have two very different things going on with them. You will see how they come together in the future.


	77. Burning Away Part 1

_Author's Note:_

 _So it took me awhile to actually figure out what I wanted to do with Addy for this arc and I think I have it pretty much sorted. Hope that it all goes well. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Hey Addy," Usopp said. Addy woke up with her eyes blood shot and blinked a couple of times at Usopp trying to clear her vision. After spending most of the night awake she felt exhausted. She rubbed her face and looked back at Usopp.

"What?" she asked feeling out of it. She stumbled as she got up and Usopp had to grab onto her arm to steady her. She really needed a drink. "Something up?"

"Nami wants you on the helm," he replied. Addy sighed. Of course Nami wanted her at the helm. The navigator always got what they wanted. Or perhaps it was an excuse to get her to interact with the crew. Either way she couldn't exactly say no. Getting down from the crows nest she saw Luffy and Zoro sitting on the upper deck by the helm room along with Princess.

"I wonder if it's not going to snow anymore," Luffy asked.

"There's no way it would," Zoro replied. Was he awake for that blizzard they sailed through. Addy could no longer remember. It felt like ages ago but it only must have been a week.

"Does too. You don't know since you slept through it last time." I guess that answered Addy's question. Luffy then turned towards Addy. "Hey, do you think it'll snow again?"

"It's possible," Addy answered slowly making sure she was getting her words right. "But when you first enter the Grand Line you are in a special part of Ocean. All matters of chaos are attracted there."

"That doesn't mean you can relax your attention here, though," Princess interjected looking at Addy. Addy glared back at her. She was in no mood to deal with her. "It'd be rare for this sea to be wild like the first journey but it's still true that this sea is a lot more difficult than ordinary ones Never underestimate this sea That's an ironclad rule."

"Finally something we agree on." Vivi looked at her confused and somewhat surprised. "Paradise has a different feel entirely. It's more rough and untamed yet it is also calm. It treats those who truly love Ocean well."

" _See Addy,"_ Merry exclaimed though she still sounded teary. " _Perhaps you can get along with Vivi. Just talk about water and nothing to do with politics."_

"Hey guys!" Sanji yelled out bring out a tray of glasses with what looked like green liquid in them. "Wanna have my special drink?" The chicken came down the stairs following him.

"Yeah!" Luffy shouted jumping down from the upper deck onto the lower. Landing right next to Addy. Zoro followed after him, three swords in hand. They all sat down on deck and each took a drink in hand though Sanji insisted that Addy take one first. He also handed her a flask of something which she was also grateful for. Taking a shot out of that she then moved on to the other drink. As soon as she placed the straw in her mouth an intense burst of flavor flowed through. She wasn't exactly sure how to describe it though she did have one word for it.

"This stuff is amazing," she said looking at Sanji who was absolutely beaming. She saw Zoro grumble but agree as well. Luffy was happy slurping his second glass down and the chicken was doing the same though he seemed to be having trouble with the straw.

"Say, Usopp," Luffy stated taking a break from the drink. "Make a fishing tackle for me."

"Fishing, huh?" Zoro stated. "That's a good idea!"

"Particularly since it means less work for me," Addy said. After her conversation with Merry she went fishing for a few hours to try to clear her head before returning back to the crows nest. Unfortunately, she didn't bring back that large of a catch "Honestly, I'm pretty sure I'm the reason we haven't all starved."

"Addy sweet is so generous with the use of her talents," Sanji swooned going all heart eyed.

Addy gave him a sideways look and rolled her eyes. Nothing to do about that hopeless case.

"Okay," Usopp exclaimed. "Then I'll make an artistic fishing rod for you."

Meanwhile the chicken was still having trouble with the straw until Sanji grabbed it while it was still in its mouth. "Hey," Sanji stated dragging the straw back into the glass. "It goes like this." The chicken sucked it down immediately while everyone looked at it amazed.

" _Carue is amazing isn't he?"_ Merry said.

"Who?" Addy whispered.

" _The duck_."

"It has a name?"

"Wow, you sure can drink," Sanji said. "Hey, is it good?" Sanji handed him another one and the chicken drank that down instantly as well and a third one as well. How many of these did Sanji make?

"Whoa!" Luffy remarked. "Amazing!" The chicken just kept drinking them down. It was a wonder that it didn't explode. Sanji, Usopp and Luffy were encouraging it while Addy shook her head fondly. She glanced at Zoro but noticed that he wasn't looking so much at the chicken as he was her. He blushed and turned away rubbing the back of his head. At that point the chicken collapsed backwards onto its back letting out a stream of the special drink out of its mouth. They all burst out laughing, even her and Zoro who let out a chuckle.

"Stupid Carue!" Usopp remarked laughing. The chicken was rather silly. Addy thought she heard a splash in Ocean and looked towards the sea getting up and moving next to the figurehead where the sound was closest. Sanji, Usopp, Luffy and Zoro followed her as well and soon she noticed what was causing the noise.

"Hey, everyone, look!" Sanji announced. "It's a dolphin!"

" _I love dolphins,"_ Merry remarked. " _Why don't we see more of those?_

"They are rare in this part of Ocean," Addy said. "In order for them to survive they have to get much larger than the ones you find in the seas outside of the Grand Line."

"Whoa!" Nami stated. "He's cute!" Sure enough the dolphin jumped towards them causing a massive splash in Ocean as well as revealing its large shadow that it casted over the ship as it jumped over sprinkling water onto them. Addy immediately booked it towards the helm. She already knew that it was going to be trouble. She thought she heard Luffy shouting that it was huge and she had to agree at least compare to how small the dolphins in East Blue were. When she first saw them she wondered if she was hallucinating tiny dolphins.

Basically shoving Vivi out of the way she grabbed she went into the room and grabbed onto the pole connecting herself with Merry.

" _It feels like it has been forever,"_ Merry stated. " _I never want this feeling to go away."_

"Don't say that," Addy said as Luffy shouted his order to get out of here. Addy felt the glasses break on deck as everyone raced to their positions. Meanwhile Princess stood their completely useless. Addy scoffed. If she was going to stay on the ship she might as well do something.

" _Princess, Addy,"_ Merry gently chided _. "She probably isn't trained on how to sail a ship."_

 _"_ Which makes her incredibly useless," Addy snapped reaching her flask for another shot but held herself back. She wasn't going to let her frustration with Princess take away from her time with her crew. Yet she could feel her entire body aching for it and she caved, taking in another shot before placing it back on her hip. The rest of her crew was working like a well-oiled machine with the boys on the sails and Nami guiding them with Luffy occasionally shouting orders. With a giant dolphin chasing them, they had to be.

"Okay!" Luffy shouted. "Ride the wave and shake him off!" Merry caught on the wave the dolphin created with its splashing and Addy guided it so that they would not capsize, hitting the wave exactly right to sail with the wave rather than against it. The wave pushed them away from the dolphin fast enough so that it stopped pursuing them.

"Nami!" Luffy yelled. "Which direction should the ship take?"

"Hold on a sec," Nami stated looking at the log pose. "Let me check. Turn to port, full!" Addy did just gently moving the pole while others worked on the sails. Addy noticed Princess coming into the room and watching her with a surprised expression on her face.

"You are really good," Vivi stated.

"Yeah," Addy said not letting go of the helm. Punching the princess would not be a good idea.

"You must have had a wonderful trainer."

"The very best," Addy mumbled. She wondered what her mother would think of her now.

" _Addy we are approaching Little Garden_ ," Merry said.

"Princess," Addy stated. "We are finally approaching Little Garden. You might want to go outside and check it out. Everyone else is by the figurehead" Princess nodded and left the room and Addy rolled her eyes.

" _See you can be nice,"_ Merry said.

"No," Addy replied. "I just wanted her away from me and that was the fastest way to do it. So what does the island look like?"

" _From here it looks like it's mostly jungle and is covered by fog though there also appear to be two large white mountains."_

Addy smiled. Warm and wet just the way she liked it. Perfect place for one last hurray. As Addy said closer to the island she guided Merry around the coast. Even from inside she could hear the sounds coming from the trees and feel the moisture increase in the air. She felt some strength flow into her body though it was nothing like what would normally occur. Her body was indeed starting to fail her.

"So this is Little Garden!" Luffy remarked.

"What's little about it?!" Zoro asked.

"It's a thick jungle!" Usopp said. Addy could just pick up the fear in his voice. Not surprising, who knows what may be in that jungle. They could have landed on a primitive island for all the knew. "A-A-Are you saying a monster may appear?!" Well someone said something to scare Usopp. Not like that was hard or anything. Let's go to our next destination without going ashore on this one!" Unfortunately for him Logs did not work like that. Plus, there was the whole food issue. Addy didn't exactly want to go looking for fish again, not for the entire crew at least.

Suddenly Addy sense a change in the water, going from sea to river. Turning to head onto the river the water took on a different attitude as Addy guided Merry deeper into the jungle. The sounds of the jungle got even louder and she could just make out Sanji yelling about something most likely food related. Even Merry seemed a bit skittish as they went in deeper into the jungle.

" _This place is very strange,_ " Merry said. " _I have never seen plants like these."_

"Welcome to the Grand Line," Addy replied. There was a loud screech from some animal in the jungle and Addy knew exactly where they were. They had stumbled upon a primitive island. Luffy was going to love this place. Maybe there was a waterfall somewhere. Addy wouldn't mind getting the chance to look.

" _Umm Addy…_ " Merry said. " _I think a giant bird is about to attack us_!" So that's why it sounded like Usopp and Nami were freaking out. Addy didn't exactly blame them. She was a little frightened herself when she first came to a primitive island when she was seven. Good times, or at least she thought they were. The entire incident was a bit hazy.

"Let the monster trio handle it," Addy answered. "Maybe Sanji can turn it into food."

"What was that for, you damn bird?!" Sanji shouted.

"See," Addy said. "He is perfectly fine." Suddenly there was a loud explosion that rocked the entire ship and caused ripples in the water despite the fact that it sounded like it came from a distance. Even Addy had to admit that was a bit strange.

"That sounded like a volcano erupted!" Usopp shouted. No, volcanoes were much louder and they would be able to see the ash and smoke.

" _Addy I don't like it here,_ " Merry said. " _I don't want you guys to go wandering in that jungle okay_?"

"I'm not sure you'll get much of a choice," Addy stated continuing to make sure that Merry didn't get to close to the coast line.

" _Look I understand-THERE IS A GIANT TIGER IN THE JUNGLE! It's walking right beside us!"_

"What do you expect to live in the jungle? Just wait until the dinosaurs show up."

" _DINOSAURS?!"_

Addy heard what she guessed was the tiger roar and felt its life flee from it as she could sense blood in the air. It chilled her and she took a shot out of her flask hoping to calm her nerves down.

"What?!" Nami shouted. "What happened?! This isn't normal! This is definitely not normal! Why does a tiger, king of the jungle, fall covered in blood?!"

"Ah!" Usopp exclaimed. "It's decided that we're not gonna go ashore on this island!"

"There planning on staying on the ship until the Log is stored, aren't they?" Addy asked.

" _It's a good plan,"_ Merry answered. " _I agree completely. Anything to keep you guys safe."_

"Let's land here!" Luffy announced. Addy let out a small smile. Captain's orders, nothing any of them could do about it. She guided Merry closer to the shore despite her complaining and left the lounge just as Zoro was dropping the anchor joining the rest of the crew on deck. She watched the ripples from the anchor being dropped for a moment before looking into the jungle. This was going to be some adventure. Luffy was laughing in anticipation and Addy couldn't help but share in the moment. Little Garden was going to be some fun.

` "Sanji!" Luffy shouted. "Make lunch for me!" He was shaking in anticipation.

"Lunch?" Sanji questioned.

"Yeah! For replenishing energy! A pirates lunch with lots of meat and no veggies! I can smell adventure in the air!"

Nami came running up and stood in front of Luffy. "W-Wait a sec!" she asked her voice in a panic. "Where're you going?!"

"Adventure!" he replied his face basically sparkling. "Wanna come along? Adventure! Adventure!" He was waving his arms back and forth. Nami looked like she was about to argue with him but decided to give up letting tears flow down her face. There was no stopping him. Usopp seemed just as shocked, tears flowing down his face as well and his mouth hanging wide open.

"Sanji! Make lunch for me!" Luffy shouted again with Sanji going into the kitchen to do so. There was adventure to be had.

"Okay," he replied. "Hold on a bit."

"Say," Princess asked. "Can I come with you?"

That's a great idea, Addy thought. There's a chance she would die horribly in the jungle.

Usopp started gaping at her while Luffy agreed immediately. Great the plan was already in motion.

"Not you too!" Nami yelled.

"Yeah… If I just sit around here, I may start thinking about all sorts of things. I'll go out to take my mind off things until the log is stored."

"No way! It may be okay for Luffy, but it's too dangerous for you!"

"I'll be fine since Carue will be with me." Yes, take the useless chicken. Perfect plan. Though the chicken was freaking out.

"He's too shocked to say a word, though." Nami whirled around to face Addy. "Addy at least you're staying right?"

"Actually I'm going to go see if I can find a waterfall."

" _Why are all of you leaving_?!" Merry asked.

"Then, I'll make lunch of love for Addy sweet, and precious Vivi," Sanji stated.

"Could you prepare something to drink for Carue?" Vivi asked.

"Of course! Please leave it to me!"

Half an hour later and Sanji was tying closed a backpack full of food to Luffy's back and Addy and Vivi had their lunches. Vivi was riding Carue. Hopefully to their doom. Sanji attached the drink to Carue as well so they were all set to go.

"Now you're all set," Sanji stated. "Three pirate lunches and a special drink for Carue."

"Okay!" Luffy replied jumping into the jungle followed by Carue and Vivi. Addy jumped in last starting in a different direction than the others. The last thing she wanted was to run into Vivi. She really hoped to find a waterfall.

"Well, then. See you later!" Vivi called out. Her and Luffy ran off into the jungle and soon they disappeared.

"I'm off as well," Addy shouted.

" _Be careful,_ " Merry replied. " _Please come back!"_

"I will Merry," Addy whispered heading into the jungle walking towards the nearest water source that wasn't the river or the sea. Hopefully she would get lucky, her senses were a little out of whack. It shouldn't be too much of a problem. After all, how dangerous could the jungle really be?

* * *

Yuuzhan Vong Jedi: Yeah I have been sort of building up to that, or at least I hope I have. Luffy certainly knows that she is not human. I have a different sort of plan for her and Luffy in the future.


	78. Burning Away Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _So I know this is a day late but life caught up to me and caused a hassle. I have no idea what I was thinking when I wrote this chapter._ Like seriously no idea but I hope you enjoy it. _I had to go back through the fic just to remember what Addy's moves even were. It has been so long since she fought anything. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

When Addy asked what could possibly go wrong she should have expected this. She was on a prehistoric island after all and she was a Straw Hat. Strange stuff was bound to happen and this was no exception. After all, if something could go wrong it probably would. Surrounding her on all sides were four relatively small dinosaurs with feathers and a hook shaped claw on each foot. They reached Addy's hip in height and had whip like tails that were at least a few feet long that swished back and forth. Also there was the razor sharp teeth, clawed hands and the fact that they were looking at Addy like it was dinner time that was slightly off putting. These things were definitely apex predators but unfortunately for them so was Addy. At least in the water she was. On land not so much.

"Okay then," Addy said removing her whip and uncoiling it. "Let's see who makes the first move." Hopefully it was them because if Addy attacked then that would leave her wide open. She did not know much about these things but she assumed that they were fast. Reminder read up on dinosaurs. Never know when it might be useful or better yet tell Nami to read up on dinosaurs since Addy wasn't going to be around to make use of that knowledge.

The one who appeared to be the leader had dark blueish grey skin with a dark blue line going across from head to tail and light blue feathers coming out of its head growled at Addy. It was standing right in front of Addy as if daring her to try to escape. Looks like they did not want to have fun times, or at least fun times for Addy. They could be having a blast for all she knew.

The one that was on Addy's right side who was also dark blue in coloration though had a scar on the side of their face tried to approach her but Addy lashed back causing it to jump back a pace and growl. The others started snapping as well. Another one which was more of a teal color than blue launched itself at Addy. Hopefully she was ready for it.

"Lautan Tarik," she shouted wrapping her whip around the dinosaur and pulling it down smashing it into the ground "Kembali!" Unfortunately, it did not seem to do much damage. Other than a few cuts it looked relatively unharmed as it got up and roared. The others approached Addy as well and it took more than a few lashes to keep them back slicing up the last one which was more green than the other three and had black stripes across its back. Despite that they did not take off running but rather stood their ground. This was bad.

"Alright then," Addy said as the four of them started to approach her all at once. She had to give them credit. Whatever they were, they were smart. Smarter than some Marines she had fought in the past. "Let's do this." She took her whip and started spinning it rapidly in a circle above her head while twisting her body preparing herself to go around in circles. She had to time this right otherwise she would be dinosaur snacks. Building up momentum she watched as the dinosaurs signaled to each other with various coos and head nods before they all jumped at her at once trying to attack her from all sides.

"Lautan Pusaran air!" She spun around like a top with her whip moving like a windmill all around her knocking back he attackers with more than a few scrapes. As she slowed down and steadied herself back solidly on the ground she hoped to have seen them run off. Hopefully far, far away. Instead they were back to surrounding her as soon as she stood still, a bit bloodier and a lot more cautious.

"Brilliant," Addy hissed as the creatures stared at her as if waiting for her to make an opening. Being eaten by dinosaurs was not how she planned for her day to go. Luffy and the others would never know what happened to her. If she was going to die she at least wanted to do it surrounded by nakama. "You guys are stubborn aren't you?" They roared at her in response. Great conversation.

She stood there trying to keep an eye on all of them as they shifted and moved around her. Circling her like the prey she was. Addy could feel her eyesight starting to blur at the edges and a wave of dizziness washed over. The dinosaurs apparently noticed as well and started inching closer waiting for her to attack, before jumping at her full force.

"I guess it's time to dance then," Addy said. "I hope you know your moves." Bracing herself she ran and leapt in between two of them letting out a gasp of relief as one of them just barely missed taking a chunk out of her leg. Maybe she should consider wearing pants instead of shorts. She pushed her back against the nearest tree causing them to whirl around to face her teeth barred. Three of them started to approach her in unison tightly packed together. They were going for the kill and Addy knew it while the fourth, the bluest one stood back waiting to see what would happen. Addy grinned, looks like she got them trapped. "Lautan Tangan!" She lashed her whip in front of the approaching dinos and it split into three ends wrapping itself around each of the dinos necks. She twisted her whip so that it tightened and Addy could see the blood starting to pour down. "Kembali!" That did it as Addy heard the crack of bone and watch as the blood spurted out soaking the ground even further. This had quickly become a blood bath. The three dinosaurs collapsed and just as she was about to recoil her whip the fourth one launched itself at her. Handle still in her hand she drew the blade and stabbed right through the dinosaur's jaw killing it instantly. What she wasn't expecting was for the weight of the dinosaur to drag her down causing her to collapse on top of the other dinosaurs that she had killed.

"Fantastic," she spat as she drew back her blade and let it refurl back into the whip handle. " I guess that settles it. Me four, dinosaurs zero. Though I might give you half a point for all the blood you got on me." The front of her was all covered in blood, including her face. She thought that she got some in her mouth as well, causing her to try to spit out the bile taste. At least it wasn't toxic. She briefly pictured the looks on the Straw Hats as they found her corpse on top of a pile of dead dinosaurs. Not exactly the prettiest of pictures though it would probably make a great story. Particularly since they did not have a doctor and probably would not be able to figure out what really happened. Regardless now she really needed to find a body of water.

Stumbling back through the jungle it seemed like everything around her went quiet even with the ringing in her ears. Perhaps everything was scared off by the sound of fighting or perhaps the smell of blood. Addy didn't blame them in a slightest. It was starting to dry and it felt sticky against her skin. But perhaps most important of all was that it was the best that she had felt in ages. It was like she was back to her usual hungover self and more than anything that terrified her. Out of anything in the world the last thing that she needed was to go down that road. Particularly with a princess around. She could not let herself fall into that darkness again. This time she might not come out of it.

Sensing out the nearest water source she made a beeline for it, not caring what it was at this point. She took off running through the jungle using her whip to slash at any of the plants in her way. At one point she thought she saw Nami and Usopp run in front of her screaming with some sort of tiger creature with fangs chasing after them. She stopped and shook her head. Addy must be really sick if she was seeing things even when she was covered in blood. After all there was nothing that would get Usopp and Nami off of Merry unless one of the monstrous trio went with them and even then it was not likely. She continued through the jungle hoping to run into water. Eventually she came to what she was looking for and stopped for a moment to catch her breath. While it wasn't a waterfall like she was hoping for it would do her well enough.

What was in front of her was a hot spring. The water itself was a shade of green while the edge was outlined with smooth rocks. Stepping closer she felt the ground underneath her feet shift from jungle undergrowth to stone. Dipping her foot into the water she could tell it was fairly hot but not hot enough to bring harm to anyone entering it. Well as long as they didn't sit in it for an extended period of time. Depending on how long the Log took to store she could take the rest of the Straw Hats here. Adjusting her eyes, she could also see that the water was fairly deep with smooth stones at the bottom. There was no shallow part but instead just dropped off. At full height she would not be able to touch the bottom. Perfect.

Diving straight into the water she felt it wash away the blood on her skin as well as leech it out of her clothes. The water lapped at her skin and eased her into its warm embrace. Feeling slightly drained and woozy she popped her head back out of the water and floated on her back looking up at the tree tops which blocked the sky. What light did filter down only gave the jungle a mysterious vibe as it broke up the darkness only slightly. It reminded her of the forest they went through when she first met the Straw Hats. She gave a small smile. Addy had no idea what she was in for at that point, nor had she regretted a moment since stepping on Merry.

She could hear birds and various other animals echo through the forest as well as other rumbling sounds. Roars, caws, screeches and what sounded like very odd laughter echoed through the trees as well as the sound of an erupting volcano followed by a blast of energy the shook the trees and caused ripples in the water. Must be a powerful volcano then. Hopefully far, far away.

Closing her eyes, she just let the water soak into her, the heat soothing her aching muscles. Anything with a survival instinct would not mess with her while she was in the water. And for the first time in a while she felt herself relax. There was no princess around, she was hopefully being eaten by a dinosaur, her crew was doing fine, Merry was good. Yet Addy still felt as if something was off. Sighing she dived back underneath the water but it still felt off. It was like she was disconnected like there was something severed between her and the water around her. No, not quite severed but frayed and if Addy had to admit to herself it had been like that for a long time.

Taking ahold of her locket she clutched it tightly in her hand. The last time she felt connected to Ocean was when Riley was alive. Before the serious drinking started. She brushed her hand against her flask and surged upwards breaking the surface of the water. Grabbing the flask off her hip, Addy uncapped it and she drained it all in one go and placed her forehead against the rocky edge of the pool.

It's not the fact that she cared about living, Ocean ever since what happened to Riley, Addy wished she was dead and if this was the way that it was going to happen so be it. Alcohol poisoning wasn't the worse way to go. Yet she couldn't figure out why she was crying. Tears were streaming down her face and she could feel sobs wracking her body. She wanted to die, more than anything. She has wanted to die for a year now but yet every time she closed her eyes she saw the faces of her nakama and a feeling that Riley would be disappointment washed over her. Addy tried to console herself, saying that they would understand but how could they? She hasn't told them anything. Not because of a lack of trust but because she didn't want their relationship to change. If they knew what she was then it would all fall apart and that more than anything scared her. It's kinda amazing how important they have become to her after such a short amount of time. And it really has been a short amount of time in the grand scheme of things.

She sniffed and wiped away the tears that formed. They would be okay. They would take of each other, find a new helmsman. Continue on adventures across the Grand Line and make Luffy King. As long as they all had each other they would be fine. With Merry as their ship nothing could stop them. She just had to have faith in that.

Addy dived back to the bottom of the pool brushing against the rocks with her bare hands before kicking back up to the surface doing a back flip and landing back in the pool without a splash just to relieve some tension. Halfway through the jump she thought she saw someone out of the corner of her eye so she popped her head back up and spotted Sanji standing there with hearts in his eyes waving rapidly at her. Addy smiled and beckoned him to come forward and he raced towards her babbling about something or other. It didn't really matter; she was just happy to see him. Her and Sanji hadn't really had time to talk since Princess showed up. As a matter of fact, she hadn't really managed to spend much time with any of them since Princess showed up. It has been rather hard to spend time both with nakama while avoiding Princess as much as humanely possible. Might as well make the most out of the time she had left and what better way than to spend time with her nakama. Maybe she would track down each of them and hang out, a sort of last farewell. And what better place to start out with than Sanji who was getting closer to the edge of the pool. Though with Sanji being here she was curious about something. What was Sanji doing off of Merry in the first place?

* * *

Moves:

Lautan Tagan: Ocean Hand

Kembali: Return

Lautan Tarik: Ocean Pull

Lautan Pusaran air: Ocean whirlpool

Jag: Well at this point Addy is dying of alcohol poisoning which is in part because she started drinking after Riley died. You will see where this goes as the arc continues.

Guest: I think Addy learned that first hand in this chapter.

Jinx: Glad to hear that you think its getting better. I certainly hope so. Lets just say Addy is going to have interesting interactions with princesses particularly Vivi as you will see.

Savage Kill: The relationship between Addy and her mother is complicated and we have only really scratched the surface. Time will tell how things got the way they are between them.


	79. Burning Away Part 3

Author's Note:

So due to life I'm changing the schedule slightly. Updates will now be on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. As always please review and let me know what you think.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

'"Addy sweet," Sanji shouted out her. He made his way to the edge of the pool and she swam up to him. Looking up at him he seemed no worse for the wear which didn't surprise her. The dinosaurs probably barely posed a threat. Maybe even less than that. He looked like he was just taking a stroll through the woods instead of a dense jungle filled with things trying to kill him.

"Hey Sanji," she replied flipping onto her back and floated there. He kneeled down beside the pool. "What have you been up to? Merry okay?"

"The Going Merry is fine my love. I am just having a hunting competition with shitty moss head."

"You're doing what now?" Another surge of power rushed through the jungle, the after effects clear through the movement of the trees and the ripples in the water. Both of them completely ignored it. They had been going on for a while. Probably just some sort of geological tick of the island. Or maybe they had really large dinosaurs. Both were likely and Addy didn't want to think of alternatives.

"The moron believes that he can collect more meat than I can." Sanji snorted. "He can't even tell a flank steak from a tenderloin. Anything he brings back could probably not even be made into stew. Although we're competing to capture a big prey, we're still looking for food. Not only does it half to be big, it also has to be tasty. That guy doesn't get it at all."

Addy smiled. Sanji really did like food and she agreed with him. The different flavors of fish in the Grand Line was absolutely exquisite. She should really talk with Sanji about all the fish in the Grand Line soon. At least for the sake of the rest of the crew. Traveling on the Grand Line, they were going to be eating fish, a lot. However, Sanji's expertise in food didn't stop him from being an idiot though. She was surprised he left Nami alone in the first place. This competition really must have gotten to him. "So what you are telling me is that both of you are wandering around the jungle looking for dinosaurs to kill because you got in some fight about who could kill the most?"

"Ah, how brilliant you are. You understand everything so well." It wasn't that hard to understand. Some guys are just competitive idiots. She was surprised that this hadn't started sooner between Zoro and Sanji.

Addy rolled her eyes fondly and ignored the comment, "Meaning that you left Merry alone with Usopp and Nami, both of which are pretty much afraid of their own shadows and let the guy who can get lost walking in a straight line wander around the jungle due to a hunting competition. Is that what you are telling me?"

He nodded and he went even more heart eyed, "How impressed do you think Nami dear will be with all the meat that I gather?" He was basically swooning at this point. "I'm sure you and Nami dear will both want to go on a date. Maybe even at the same time."

Sanji's imagination took over while Addy faced palmed getting out of the pool and immediately drying off though almost all her symptoms came back with full force. She could just keep herself steady, see where she was going and probably sort of walk in a straight line. So it could be way worse. Perfect.

But now not only did she now have to check on Merry, Usopp and Nami to make sure that they weren't eaten or destroyed she also had to track down Zoro who could be on the other side of the bloody island. She sighed, Addy had forgot how stupid guys could be sometimes when they try to one up each other. Might as well try and track Zoro down first so if anything did happen to Nami, Usopp and Merry than she wouldn't be alone in dealing with the problem and if there wasn't an issue than she would just lead him back to the ship. Sanji was also right about the other thing, they did need food and he would probably be best one to figure out what was edible. The last thing she wanted to deal with was a starving Luffy.

"Alright well," she stated snapping her fingers to get Sanji's attention. It worked like a charm and he stood before her. "I'm going to go off and search for Zoro. You keep trying to find food. I killed a couple of dinosaurs over there somewhere." She waved vaguely in the direction she came from. Addy wasn't paying much attention while running though Sanji should be able to figure it out by following the blood trail. "I'm not sure how much meat is going to be on them. Oh and try to find some vegetables as well. As much as Captain thinks you guys can survive on meat I'm pretty sure that's not actually possible."

"So wise," Sanji replied. "I will make sure to track down some tasty plants and I'm sure the meat will be tender and juicy," Somehow Addy doubted that but Sanji was the expert. As he started walking in the direction Addy pointed saying that he would collect it right away while spouting how wonderful she was Addy took a moment to think. If she had absolutely no sense of direction where would she head off to? Shrugging her shoulders, she started to head off in a randomly making sure she stayed as far away from Merry as possible.

Surprisingly nothing seemed to bother her. It was like everything was hiding, though the jungle was as noisy as it ever had been. The only thing she ran across was more undergrowth and a couple of odd bird like things with long feathery tails and what looked like wings. They tried to nip at her ankles but she shooed them off with a couple of lashes. They squawked and ran back into the undergrowth hopefully to tell all their friends to leave her alone. That would be nice.

At one point however she swore that she heard Lemon lady laugh causing her to grit her teeth. Despite the fact that they wanted to kill Princess they really annoyed her. Addy stopped in her tracks and looked around but could not spot her in part because of the dense tree cover. Addy shook her head and laughed. There was no way that they would be here. They would have to be complete imbeciles as being beaten so thoroughly by Luffy and Zoro who were not even trying and were too busy trying to kill each other. And now that Sanji was awake as well and she wasn't in an absolute stupor they were basically dead. Baroque Works might as well give up now and just let them deliver Princess to them.

There were several more rumbles in the jungle but Addy continued to brush them off. At this point she did not want to go looking for trouble. Most likely it would come find her if there was any trouble to begin with. Perhaps if she was feeling more like herself than she would go searching. It could be fun in some sense of the word. Though for all she knew it could be Luffy doing something stupid which was also likely.

She also swore she heard an odd sort of laughter filter through the trees, as well as a voice relatively close by asking what that was. Well looks like it was easier than expected to find Zoro as she headed towards his voice.

"First a long, strange earthquake, and now this? What is it this time?" Zoro asked getting louder with each step Addy took. "Are their weird creatures other than dinosaurs in this jungle? Well, that damn cook is probably the only one who'd be happy to capture things like that."

"Somehow I think the two of you might have different ideas about that," Addy said pushing back some leaves and revealing herself. Zoro turned towards her with a smile on his lips. He grabbed her hand and pulled her close so that her hands were on his chest. She smiled at him. Somehow she always felt more stable when she was around him. More at ease, like she could just relax and breath. She felt his hands trail up and down her back almost as if it was a reflex and he wasn't realizing he was doing it. "Getting frisky are we?" she asked him.

"What can I say? You just do that to me," he whispered in her ear. It sent shivers down her spin and she almost pushed him against the nearest tree and had her way with him. Unfortunately, there was no time for that sort of distraction. Maybe once they got back too Merry and checked to make sure Nami and Usopp were okay. Besides Addy didn't exactly want a dinosaur walking in on them. Or whatever else was in this jungle.

"As much as I enjoy this, your little competition left Nami and Usopp to fend for themselves on Merry."

"The damn cook thinks he can collect more meat than I can," Zoro growled. Addy chuckled. She saw the beginning of a beautiful rivalry. One filled with bickering and pointless fights over absolutely nothing. Addy paused and felt herself droop. She was sad that she was going to miss it. How many other things was she going to not be around for? She shook her head and brought herself back to the moment. No use on dwelling on it. The only thing that was down that road was pain.

"Regardless we need to go check on Merry and the others. Make sure they haven't been kidnapped or eaten by dinosaurs or something." She ran her fingers through her hair. For some reason Addy was really concerned about them. Like she had a sense that they weren't where they were supposed to be.

"I'm sure their fine. They refused to get off the ship after all." That didn't surprise Addy in the slightest. It would take something gigantic to remove them off the ship. "Besides the only threat around here are dinosaurs and those two can handle themselves. But if you want to go check on them…"

Addy nodded. Zoro was right about them being able to take care of themselves but something was still bothering her. "Can we? I would do it myself but…"

"Still feeling unwell?" His voice was filled with concern. His grip on her tightened as if he was concerned that she would disappear. She wouldn't be surprised if he left bruises but she didn't mind. It stabbed Addy right in the heart and she wanted to spill her guts right then and there. About everything. The alcohol, Riley, what she was. But she held her tongue. He would be better off in the dark. They all would. At least that is what she told herself every single time any of her nakama gave her a worried look which was becoming more and more frequent but with Zoro and Luffy it was especially hard. Particularly Luffy. With his honest and trusting persona it made Addy feel insanely guilty. Not that she had anything to feel guilty about. Everything she was doing was for their sake. They would understand and after the pain wore off would probably agree with her.

"Yeah, but I'm pretty sure I'm getting better," she said. He gave a soft smile and his eye lite up looking like green stars. He seemed to relax and his hands continued to dance on her back. Addy felt like the worst person on the planet. But it was all for the best. They would be better off in the long run. They had to be.

"Alright we can go check on Merry. Perhaps I will run into more dinosaurs on the way." She took his hand and started guiding him back towards Merry. There was no way he was going to find it by himself in any reasonable amount of time. He immediately started blushing and looked away from her. Zoro really was one odd guy. Flirty one moment and completely embarrassed the next. Not that it was a bad thing. It was rather endearing. Addy had never slept with a guy like him before. It was rather refreshing.

The two of them just walked, enjoying the silence and each other company. Addy wondered how many chances she would get for moments like this not just with Zoro but with any of her nakama. She at least wanted to give them fond memories. Why was this so hard? She sighed and he turned to look at her. She looked back up at him. Might as well make the most of her time. Addy took his hand and placed it on her far shoulder. She then moved her hand to his far hip and moved closer to him so that their hips were touching.

"Something wrong?" he asked worry lacing his voice.

"Nah, just want to be closer to you," she replied. "That okay with you?"

"Y-yeah I mean of course. Why wouldn't I want you close? Not that I," he was absolutely stammering and Addy found it absolutely adorable. Apparently she said that out loud because he turned an interesting shade of red and looked away muttering something about not being adorable.

"You're somewhat right about that," Addy said licking her lips. That drew his attention back to her. "I could think of several other adjectives that can also describe you. Shall I list them later?"

"Please do," he mumbled. She nodded and rested her head on his shoulder. Not long later in the background she heard the volcano erupt again in three short bursts and Zoro groaned.

"This isn't good," he stated. "I'm running out of time." She then heard a squish noise and Zoro tensed up. Both of them looked down and saw that Zoro accidentally stepped on a baby dinosaur. It had three horns and this sort of frill thing and it looked absolutely angry. "Ah, sorry," Zoro said removing his foot of the baby. It immediately launched itself at Zoro's shoe and bit into it hard. Zoro started shaking his foot up and down quickly trying to dislodge the baby. "Ahh! Let go! I said sorry! Hey! I don't have time to mess around! Let go!"

Addy couldn't help herself and immediately starting laughing. If only she had a camera dial right now. Zoro was basically hoping around on one foot but the baby was firmly latched on.

"Need some help there?" she asked still laughing.

Zoro turned bright red and mumbled something about being able to handle it when both of them heard a growl right next to them. Oh that was going to be immensely fun to deal with. Apparently mommy dinosaur had found them.

* * *

Jag: I need to write Addy in action more if possible. Vivi will get her moment in the sun in this fic. Just might be a little bit before it happens. As for the ending well you are going to have to wait and see.


	80. Burning Away Part 4

Author's Note:

So this actually would have been up yesterday but my internet decided to be non functional. But here it is. This was another chapter that wasn't the easiest to write. I think I struggled slightly to keep Zoro in character. As always please review and let me know what you think.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

Mommy dinosaur or whatever it was roared at them and baby dinosaur let go of Zoro's foot and basically ran behind the nearest tree. Addy swore the thing was snickering at them and she was half tempted to try to eat the thing. It would probably taste like garbage though, or give her indigestion. Still immensely tempting.

Mommy dinosaur was pawing at the ground kicking up large amounts of dust. Addy unraveled herself from Zoro and took several steps away. Let him handle this. She would not help any getting caught in the cross fire. After all he seemed fully prepared. Drawing out all three of his swords he charged at the beast before she had a chance to charge at him. With three quick slices he slide past the dinosaur landing on one knee and sheathed his swords in the same moment just as the dinosaur collapsed behind him not a second later. Addy whistled. That took no time whatsoever. It was sort of embarrassing how long her fight with that dinosaur pack took. Though it also told her just how strong of a crew she had. She thought she heard the baby squeak and saw it run off into the undergrowth, probably to try to go find more of its family.

"I got to say," Addy said running her hands over the creature's brown scales. It wasn't scaly like she imagined it but rather smooth. "That was rather impressive. Captain is going to love this."

Zoro grinned, "And I bet the cook hasn't caught as much as I have."

"Well, we will see about that," she replied. Sanji was an excellent hunter as well. She found herself curious about how much meat these guys managed to obtain. Particularly since that is what they were actually trying to do.

They continued walking through the jungle with Addy in the lead making sure that they were going the right way. Zoro was dragging the creature by its horn like it was almost no effort whatsoever, causing a huge ruckus in the jungle. At least it would get everything else to leave them alone hopefully.

Addy was half tempted to jump him right then and there. His shows of strength always riled her up but that would defeat the purpose of checking on Merry. Later she would wait till later. After all anticipation would make the feelings that much stronger.

"What are you thinking?" Zoro called out to her.

"How much I want to pin you to the nearest tree," Addy said. Anticipation was even better when two people were desperate.

"Why don't you?" his voice lowered almost like it had a slight growl in it.

She looked back at him and saw him licking his lips. He pushed his shoulders back and tensed up his muscles showing them off. Yep later they were definitely going to have a fun time. "Don't you have a hunting competition that you need to get done?" she asked.

"That can wait. Besides you're my witness that I killed it within the time limit."

"We still have Merry, Nami and Usopp to think about."

Zoro grumbled but continued pulling the dinosaur instead of pinning Addy to the nearest tree. That's another thing Addy really liked about him. Whatever else was going on his priority was also on the crew. Just like hers was. With him and Luffy she knew that they would all be alright. They would take care of each other when the time came. They would find a new helmsman or perhaps let Usopp take over. Or maybe they would switch off, taking turns at the helm. It something they would sort out along with what to do with her stuff. Perhaps she should write a will or something. After all it's not like any of her kind is around to give her a proper funeral. That, a list of what to do with her stuff and one last request to kill Princess if she wasn't already dead yet.

"I think I recognize this tree," Zoro said placing his hand on one of the identical looking palm trees wrapped in vines that grew everywhere in this jungle. There were at least four others within eyesight that looked exactly the same, right down to the type of vine growing on them. Addy rolled her eyes fondly. At this moment they were heading directly towards the river Merry was floating on. All they would have to do is walk along the river bank to find Merry and hopefully Usopp and Nami. Sometimes she wondered how regular people found their way around without being able to sense different bodies of water.

"It was go left at the tree wrapped in vines, right?" he asked out loud.

"Look it doesn't matter," Addy replied. "Let's just continue going in the direction we were heading and soon we will reach the river. Once we reach that we should be able to find Merry easily enough."

"Well Nami is right over there, we could ask her."

"What? Nami is off Merry? " Addy walked back towards Zoro and saw what he was pointing at. Sure enough Nami was leaning against a tree with her head down and her arms crossed. One leg was pressed against the tree and her orange hair covered her eyes so Addy's couldn't tell what expression was on her face. It certainly looked like Nami but Addy was getting a very strange vibe. Something was wrong but she couldn't place her finger on it. It didn't help that her head felt like it was about to explode and that everything was slightly blurry. Even with the dip in the water she was just managing to function. At least she hadn't lost the ability to form coherent sentences. She hoped.

"Perfect timing," Zoro said talking to Nami. "We had just lost our way and I wasn't sure what to do-"

"We have not lost our way," Addy stated. "I know exactly where we are going." Zoro placed a hand on her shoulder and she looked at him. Once again he seemed worried and that alarmed her. How much was she off that Zoro thought that she couldn't know where they were going. Were her symptoms really that bad? Or worse were they really that obvious? Had the rest of the crew picked up on it as well. That could cause problems if they started asking questions about it.

"And Addy is not feeling well again so I was wondering if you knew the direct route back." That would actually be helpful. Addy's route was rather indirect. Zoro started dragging the dinosaur towards Nami and Addy walked with him. Yet the closer they got the more alarm bells went off in Addy's brain. Something was definitely wrong. Like something major was only she could figure out what it was.

"What're you doing here, anyway?" Zoro asked her.

"Nami is everything okay with you?" she wondered. Nami didn't responded to them whatsoever. It was like she was made out of stone.

Even Zoro noticed at this point. "Hey. What's the deal?"

Suddenly from out of nowhere a white liquid shot out from the jungle and wrapped itself around there feet. Before Addy could even grab ahold of her whip the goop hardened rapidly knocking both of them to the ground. As Addy was coughing up dirt and trying to figure out what in Ocean was going on she felt the liquid wrap around her wrists, pulling her arms behind her back. Just as quickly is hardened like the stuff around her legs. Well it was official. She wasn't going anywhere. Addy glanced at Zoro and saw he was in the same predicament. He was gritting his teeth and his eyes glowed with rage. Whoever did this was dead. So very, very dead.

She thought she also heard a sort of high pitch laughter. Almost as if someone was cackling to themselves before saying something about how intelligence always wins before the voice disappeared bringing the jungle to a stillness.

"Addy you alright!" Zoro shouted.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she answered back. "Don't be too loud. I don't want to attract anything while we are in this state."

"What the hell is this stuff?"

"I don't have any idea." Addy squirmed around trying to free herself and pushed herself trying to break it but it was no use. The stuff might as well have been made out of steel. Zoro was struggling to break free and he was having no luck either. If he couldn't do it than there is no chance that Addy would be able to. She also got a better look at the restraints. They almost looked like they were candle shaped and they were huge. There was no real maneuvering with those things on. Once again Addy cursed Princess. Somehow the back of her brain told her that this was her fault. Somehow. She wasn't sure how but it definitely was.

"Would you be able to break it if you had one of your swords?" Addy asked.

"Not from this angle. Can't build up the momentum even if I did get one in my hands."

"I suppose that is true of my restraints as well?"

He nodded. "What about smashing it together to break it?"

"I think that would require at least one of us to be able to stand up. I definitely can't. You?" Zoro tried his hardest but even he couldn't manage to stand. Addy cursed. This was bad. If Zoro was at least able to cut or break one of them free than they might be able to find Luffy to get them out of this. As it stands they were stuck. Not that she blamed Zoro for their predicament but rather herself. If she hadn't drunk herself to death's door than she would have figured out what was wrong with Nami. She looked around and fake Nami had seemly vanished.

"She was probably made out of the same stuff that is tying us up," Zoro said. "Can't believe I fell for it."

"We both did," Addy replied. "Though to be fair we weren't exactly expecting stuff to come flying out of the jungle and attack us."

"Maybe we should. It is the Grand Line after all."

Your probably right. If anybody should be expecting this type of thing to happen though it would be me."

"You haven't been feeling well lately. Just wait till you are back to your old self." Addy looked away from him for a moment before turning back to look at him. There was no way she was going without letting all of the Straw Hats know how she felt about them. Using whatever strength, she had left in her body after the dinosaur attack and all the alcohol she downed she crawled towards him trying to get as close as she could so that her chest was resting against his. She wasn't sure what was going to happen and the last thing she wanted to be was far away from her nakama at this point. She placed her forehead so that it was touching his. Addy could feel his breath across her skin and she was close enough to feel his heart beat which was going several miles a minute. A blush spread across his face and his pupils were dilated. Addy had no doubt hers were as well. Zoro just did that to her.

"W-What are you?" he stuttered.

Addy smiled. "I only want to be close to my nakama. Is that a problem?"

Zoro shook his head but couldn't exactly make the full movement. Addy got the message though. The two of them just lied there for a moment taking in each other. For Addy it seemed like the world around the disappeared and the only thing that matter was the two of them at this very moment. She felt her chest constrict and it was like butterflies dancing in her stomach. What was going on with her? It wasn't like they hadn't done this before. Ocean, not long after they first met they were basically on top of each other hiding under a desk from the Bandit King. Yet here, right now it was different and Addy had the feeling that she should know what is going on. But just like what was wrong with Nami this was eluding her as well. But her judgement was clouded and she could feel her body wearing down. How much longer would it be?

She took a deep breath, taking in Zoro's scent. That of steel and blood and something that was just Zoro. She would always remember that scent. The feel of his body next to here. His every breath and grunt. The way his hands danced across her body in the midst of passion. Yeah more than anyone else she had been with she would remember him. And at that very moment, in a strange jungle tied up with an even stranger substance she wished that he would always remember her. That he would always carry a part of her with him wherever he went.

"Zoro?" she asked him softly. There was no need to speak up here. Not now when they were so close together.

"Yeah? he whispered. "What is it?"

"Tonight, after our training regimen and whatever else we get up to. After everyone else has gone to bed. Would you stargaze with me? Don't worry I don't expect you to stay up the entire time but I just want someone nearby. I haven't had the easiest time sleeping."

Zoro let out a smile. "Of course. Anything." Right because that was Zoro. If he could do something for the crew he would. Because he was first mate to the most incredibly captain Addy ever had the pleasure of meeting. With an extraordinary navigator, a talented sniper and a brilliant cook. She was so grateful to all of them. For giving her these last few months the adventures of a life time.

"Though can you do something for me?" Zoro asked her.

"If it is in my power," she said.

"Just get better soon. I'm not sure we will be able to handle everything with you out of sorts. We need the best helmsman we are ever going to meet back."

She was speechless and for a moment she could not say anything. Why out of everything did he have to ask for the one thing she couldn't do? She would give him anything he asked for, but that. That was something beyond her. At this moment she wanted to grasp onto her locket and take comfort in the fact that despite everything she would be seeing Riley again soon. That they would be together forever this time and nothing was ever going to separate them again. Sure it wasn't the way she wanted to go. Actually if she was fully honest with herself this was the last way she wanted to go. She would have preferred dying protecting those she cared for but instead she was too weak. Instead of fighting against the temptation she let it take hold. She could almost sense Riley's disappointment already but she didn't care. The idea of living without that crutch. Of having all those memories and pain with her. Of the hole in her soul being a gaping maw. That was something she couldn't live with.

"I will see what I can do," Addy replied. "Everything will work out in the end. It's only a matter of time after all and everything will be as it should be."

* * *

Yuuzhan Vong Jedi: I couldn't help it. That scene was too precious I just had to include it.

blackcat711: Let's just say when they do find out they are not going to be the happiest of people. There is probably going to be an entire arc dealing with the ramifications of that reveal.

Jag: Addy bonding with the crew is some of my favorite stuff to right, though also by far the hardest. I need to get her to interact with Sanji more. They have an interesting chemistry.


	81. Burning Away Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _So we are past the halfway mark in this arc. This is was actually a rather enjoyable chapter to write and I am not fully sure why. Regardless I will get back on schedule at some point. Life is still in a little bit of chaos. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"Well, well look at what we have here. Two little love birds," a familiar voice stated. Addy lifted her head above Zoro to take a look at where the voice was coming from. She outright snarled as she saw the two morons who tried to attack Luffy and Zoro on Whiskey Peak. She knew this was Princess fault somehow. Lemon lady was carrying Nami over her shoulder and Addy could see the same white bindings on her.

"Nami!" Addy yelled. "You alright?!"

"They have Nami?!" Zoro questioned flipping around to take a look at the two people approaching them. He also growled and got a glint in his eye. If it wasn't for the bindings….

"I'm fine," she answered back. "You?"

"Could be better," Addy answered just as guy stood over her grinning.

"You guys would have been better staying out of our way," he said picking up Addy and throwing her over his shoulder. She did not appreciate being handled like this. "But you just had to stick your nose in something that wasn't any of your business." He did the same to Zoro and like Addy he just let it happen. There was no real point in fighting back when they were incapacitated the way they were. There two captors started walking. Apparently they were taking them somewhere.

"Screw you," Addy snapped. "You can have Princess. Just leave us out of it."

Lemon lady started laughing and Addy wanted to rip her own ears off. "Oh no can do," Lemon lady said. "You know our bosses secret. And no one is allowed to know that."

"If you don't shup up I'm going to make your death excruciating painful," Addy stated back. She wished she could glare at Lemon lady but she was not able to do so in her current position. "As of right now I am only making your death moderately painful."

"Oh I would love to see you try. We are officer agents. You can't even land a hand on us."

"I don't care who you are, I am going to kill you."

"Very protective of the princess now aren't you?" the guy carrying asked snidely. Addy had completely forgotten his number or whatever random date he went by.

"You are joking right? I hate her. If you managed to kill her I would probably throw a party. Ocean, I would write your boss a card saying thank you. No, I'm going to kill you because you are messing with my nakama." Next thing Addy knew she was being thrown on the ground. Hard. She knew she would have some bruises after that. She could also hear Nami and Zoro groaning as well on either side of her as well. Looks like she landed in between the two of them.

"Here they are," the guy said. Addy looked around at where they exactly were. They appeared to be in the middle of an open field. Vivi looked to be in the same predicament they were except her hands were free. In front of her was what appeared to be a giant white cake with three layers made out of the same material keeping them bound up. What was this stuff? On top of the last layer was what appeared to be a face with candles sticking out of the top of that. Looking around off to the side she also spotted a giant trapped by the same stuff. Not far from him was another unconscious giant. Addy blinked a few times to make sure what she was seeing was accurate. What were giants doing here? Shouldn't they be at Elbaf or whatever giants do? It's been awhile since she seen one and she never expected to run into them this soon on the Grand Line.

"How naïve," Brown coat man stated stomping on Zoro's head. "Being ridiculed by people of their caliber is so embarrassing that I'm pissed at myself."

"You can't help that you're weak," a new voice said though Addy thought that she recognized it from the jungle right before they were attacked. She looked at its source. He was a rather frail looking guy, wearing a blue and white striped vest with frills who had his hair designed in the shape of the number 3. Addy groaned. Why couldn't they be captured by someone who didn't look like an idiot? It would be a nice change of pace.

"Huh? What was that?" Brown coat asked.

"Nothing! Just set the candles up quickly!" What candles?

"Set?" Nami questioned. She turned her head and let out a gasp. Looks like she noticed the cake thing too. "What is that?!"

"Nami, Mr. Bushido, Addy," Vivi stated. Mr Bushido? She wasn't talking about Zoro was she? For some reason a spike of anger ran through Addy. It was silly. There were plently of other reason to hate her.

"Vivi!" Nami exclaimed. "What happened?! Weren't you with Luffy?!"

"Yes I was, but…"

"If you're wondering about Straw Hat," Brown coat said. "I took care of him myself! It was an easy job, too."

"You did?" Zoro asked before grinning.

"Right, and I'm a member of the Navy," Addy spat. She felt herself being picked up again this time by the same white substance that was holding her. It lifted her up towards the bottom layer of the giant cake thing. As soon as her feet touched the substance she could feel herself sink into it up to her ankles before solidifying. At least her hands were free now as the goo dropped off of her hands and joined the rest of the cake. The others were in the same situation, with her being trapped in between Vivi and Zoro. She could also hear a grinding sound and looking up saw that the giant face thing had started turning, making a mechanical whirling noise. Mr. 3 had also started laughing apparently finding their predicament highly amusing. Nami and Vivi were struggling to get out of the stuff while Addy just glared at the guy who put them up here. Zoro was doing the same as well, cocking an eyebrow at the guy.

Mr. 3 meanwhile held up his arms and said, "Welcome, friends, to my service set!" He then bowed as if this was some great accomplishment or something.

"Is this how it feels to be a candle stuck in a cake?" Zoro asked looking up at the spinning thing.

"What's that spinning up there?" Nami wondered.

"Nothing good," Addy replied.

"And I can't move my legs," Nami added in.

"Of course they're not going to let us move," Zoro stated. "They're the enemy." He took out one of his swords and tried to stab the stuff they were trapped it. The sword bounced off completely not even making a dent. He tried making a cut but that didn't work either only leaving a slight scratch. "Damn. It's hard. Plus I can't put any of my strength into it from this stance. Addy you think you can do it?"

Addy uncoiled her whip and lashed at the stuff. She could see a little of it flake off but not much. "If you gave me a thousand years I might be able to chip away enough of it too free one foot," she answered.

"Something's raining down!" Vivi announced. Sure enough she was right as what looked like snow was starting to fall on their heads.

Mr. 3 really started laughing heartily and their attention turned back on him. There was also what looked like a little girl behind him carrying some kind of basket. "May you enjoy my Candle Service!" he proclaimed. "The wax haze falling from above you will eventual change you into wax figures! You'll become perfect human models that not even I could achieve with my skills! Your wax figures will have literally captured your spirit! Now die, in the name of art."

"Screw that!" Nami yelled at him. "Why do we have to turn into your works of art?! Broggy! Quit sitting there and go on a rampage! You're gonna get turned into a wax figure too, you know!"

"Wait that's Broggy?! One of the former captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates?!" Addy asked. That just left even more questions. What was one of the strongest giants in the world doing on this island?

"Man, talk about a huge person," Zoro said.

"He's a giant," Addy stated. "They come from an island known as Elbaf. What he is doing here I don't have any clue." Though that might explain some of the rumbling in the jungle previously.

"Anything you say to him is pointless!" Mr. 3 shouted. "He just now realized he foolishly shed proud, joyful tears of victory after killing his friend Dorry, with whom he had fought for 100 years but without even noticing that he had suffered injuries beforehand!" Addy suppressed a chuckle. So the other giant was Dorry then. The other captain of the Giant Warrior Pirates. Luckily for them those idiots had no idea he was still alive, just unconscious. So all they had to do was wait until he wakes up and beat the crap out of the Baroque Works people. Hopefully he would do that soon. Like in the next ten minutes or so and hopefully not tomorrow.

"Or did you perhaps cry for your friend instead?" Mr. 3 continued. He just continued laughing. "Whatever the case, there's no undoing what you've done now, fool!" Rage was radiating off of Addy. If this guy interrupted a fight between two giants then he needed to be killed. They fought with honor and pride and while Addy didn't exactly understand fighting like that, she respected it. Even admired it. But being a born pirate does have its downsides and being a dirty fighter was one of them. Zoro was even angrier. The fury that was coming off of him would make Addy run the other way if it was directed at her. And all Mr. 3 did was continue laughing. It made Addy cringe.

"I knew," the giant whispered but in his loud booming voice they could all hear it. "I knew about it. From the moment we first exchanged blows I knew Dorry was hiding something."

"You knew, huh?" Mr. 3 asked. "You lie! If so, then why didn't you cease your fighting? I didn't see a shred of pity in the way you heartily cut him down!"

"A pipsqueak who doesn't even know the first thing about duels would never understand the meaning of those tears! What would you know?! Are you saying that I should shame a warrior who hides the fact he's been weakened and tries to fight anyway?!" Zoro was now brimming with rage, it was coming off of him in droves. This was hitting Zoro hard. Addy fully made up her mind then. She still didn't give a damn about the princess and would still try to find a way to get rid of her but any organization that employed such underhanded tactics as those that this guy was using needed to be taken down. Baroque Works needed to fall. She hoped she had the time to see it happen.

"A warrior who'll go that far to keep fighting doesn't deserve pity!" Broggy screamed. Mr. 3 was taken aback. He looked scared. "And now I know the reason behind it. Now that I know, I'm going to finish things with my own two hands!" She could see Broggy fighting against the restraints, putting everything he had into breaking free. Sure enough he smashed through one of the hand restraints, turning the wax into dust. A second later he broke free of the other one and all of the wax that was holding him down crumbled away creating cloud of white dust. "That's the very least I can do for my dear friend Dorry!" He stood up fully, in all his glory when suddenly something exploded right in his face.

"Broggy!" Nami yelled as Broggy fell to his knees. Multiple explosions started hitting him, one after another. Addy whirled around looking for what was causing it and spotted the Brown coat guy flicking something at Broggy. Oh how much she wanted to wring his neck right now. Broggy collapsed into the dirt, landing with a large thump.

"Broggy!" Nami and Vivi yelled.

Lemon lady laughed. "How dumb!"

"I am going to kill you, you stupid bitch!" Addy shouted. "You'll be nothing left but a bloody pulp!"

"Big talk for a person on death's door!" Lemon lady said continuing to laugh. As soon as Addy was free she was the first one on the hit list.

"I underestimated how brutishly strong these giants can be!" Mr. 3 said. "It would seem you need to be seized completely! Doru-Doru Arts! Handcuffs!" One of his arms turned into wax and he lobed it towards Broggy. It broke off from his arm and formed a handcuff shape and went straight around Broggy's wrists. He threw three more which went around his other wrist and feet. "I'm just getting started!" Mr. 3 yelled as both of his arms turned into wax covering Broggy arms and feet completely. His hair suddenly caught on fire at the start of the three. Both Nami and Vivi gasped at what he was doing to Broggy. "And now for the finishing touch! Take this!" He launched three blobs into the air and they came down as spikes, right through Broggy hands and feet. Nami had to look away as Broggy let out a scream that could probably be heard across the Grand Line.

"Can't move now, can you?!" Mr. 3 cackled. Broggy's head thumped down. He probably passed out from the pain. Mr. 3 was laughing hysterically and all four of them glared at him angrily.

"How can he be so horrific?!" Vivi asked.

"I have asked that question about people several times," Addy said. "I have never found an answer."

"Now, then!" Mr. 3 yelled. "Accelerate, Candle Service! Turn these people into wax figures." The thing above them started spinning faster and Addy could feel the dust coming into her lungs. It was like they were being filled with soot or trying to breath in smoke. Her chest was aching. She could feel pain lace up her legs as they slowly hardened. Addy wasn't the only one having problems. Vivi started hacking while it sounded like Nami was trying to cough up a lung. Only Zoro seemed unaffected, just continuing to glare at Mr. 3.

"M-My chest is starting to hurt…" Nami mumbled. "The wax haze is getting into our lungs! At this rate, we're going to turn into wax figures from the inside out!" That wasn't quite true. They were not inhaling enough of the dust and that would only go into the lungs. It would not be absorbed into the blood stream. It was a time thing. Would their lungs fill up with wax first or would they harden on the outside before that would occur. Either way it was going to be immensely painful.

"Yes! Yes!" Mr. 3 proclaimed. "Make it look like you're in as much pain as you can! Expressions of pain and agony are the very things I seek in art! May you solidify while filled with terror!" If that is what he wanted than Addy was going to try her damnedest not to give it to him.

"You call this art, you creepy topknot freak?!" Nami yelled at him. "How dare you do that to Broggy! You guys are going to regret this! You got that?!"

"Scream and holler all you want!" Addy thought she heard the sound of water splashing onto the ground and turned to look at Broggy. Tears were streaming down his face and her heart ached for him. To giants the best death, the honorable death was to die in battle. To die this way, to this man must be incredibly painful.

Mr. 3 also whirled around to look at Broggy. "What a look," he exclaimed. "Yes! That sorrow! That grief! That struggle! What a marvelous work of art!"

"Oh no!" Nami pronounced. "My hands won't move! I don't want to die this way! Can't we do something?!"

"My body's already turning stiff!" Vivi yelled. "What do we do?!"

"Zoro! Addy! Do something!" Nami shouted at them.

"Like what?" Addy said. She could feel her body as it slowly hardened and it became harder and harder to move. If the slightest movement took enormous effort though it was still possible. Her whip was still in hand. "I'm open to suggestions." In honestly she was relieved. If she died here than at least it would have some honor, some dignity, unlike drinking yourself there. Yet she still had to figure out a way to get the others free from this torture. Because if they died here as well than Addy would not be able to to go peacefully.

"Hey, old man," Zoro stated. "You can still move, can't you?" Broggy grunted in response. "So can I." Zoro started drawing out his cursed sword from its sheath. "Whadya say we crush these guys together?" He fully took it and drew the more generic one out as well.

"Hold on Zoro!" Nami said. "What are you doing?! You're not seriously gonna-!"

"Yeah," he responded. Addy still wasn't sure what was going on but Nami certainly figured it out.

"You're gonna cut your own legs?! Quit joking around!"

"It's no joke. It's the only way out of here."

"Addy!"

Addy shrugged. "He's not wrong. Right now it's the only way I can think of too free ourselves."

"Does that mean you want me too free you?!" Zoro asked.

"No, I would pretty much bleed out the second the blade went completely through my leg. Or even partially through. Chances are I would be dead by the time I got to the ground. Freeing me would be useless. I'm going to stand here and think about other options we might have." Which right now were around absolutely zero.

Zoro nodded and he seemed oddly relieved. "What're you two gonna do?"

"What are you talking about?!" Vivi asked. "It's pointless. Even if you do get down from here that way, they'll catch you again!"

"There's no way to know that unless we try! We're gonna kick the bucket if we stay here anyway. So let's put up some ugly struggling. There's no reason to die heroically for these pieces of scum! Right?!"

"I'm not sure bleeding to death is a good option either," Addy pointed out. "Unless we found something to cauterize the wounds. Though I'm also fairly sure you could beat these guys with no legs so it might be worth a try. And his hair might work to stop the bleeding."

"He's bluffing!" Mr. 3 proclaimed. "There's no way he could do that! He's merely acting tough!"

Broggy at that moment started laughing and Addy let out a chuckle as well. They really did not know Zoro at all.

"What a cheeky runt," Broggy said. "I'm pathetic. It seems I had even lost the will to fight. I'll fight alongside you and your fighting spirit!"

"You can't be serious right?!" Nami asked. "How will you be able to fight afterward?!"

"Who knows?" Zoro answered. "But I plan to win." Zoro then got that look in his eye. The look that was less human and more demon. Addy had only seen it a few times before but every time she had Zoro always triumphed. It sent chills down her spine and tingles into the darkest reaches of her heart. Perhaps the two of them were more alike than she thought. It dawned on her another way that they could win. It was gruesome and she promised herself she would never use it. But she was dying already so it wouldn't matter. She could lose a little more of herself if it meant her nakama would live. She could go to that dark place if it meant they would go free.

"Hey Zoro," she said her voice going slightly lower. "Make sure to make it bleed."

He gave her a dark grin. "Got a plan in mind?"

She matched the dark look in his eye. "Let's just say I have something in the works."

"W-Wait!" Vivi stated. "I'll fight, too!" Addy snickered. There was no way she was going to survive the blood loss. This was perfect. She was signing up for her own death.

"Vivi!" Nami said.

"Alright, then!" Zoro replied.

"Let's do it runt!" Broggy shouted struggling against his new restraints.

"Don't be stupid!" Mr. 3 yelled. "What can you possibly do?!"

In that exact moment Zoro sank his swords into his legs, Luffy, Usopp and the chicken came barging into the clearing smashing down every tree in the way screaming their heads off. They were actually so quick to get there that they launched themselves to the other side of the clearing.

"Hey, you guys!" Luffy shouted as he flew past them. "I'm gonna kick your asses, just so you know!" Addy let out a sigh of relief. If it wasn't for the fact that her legs were frozen stiff she would be trembling. Looks like she didn't have to go to that dark place after all. Captain was here to save them. She could die as herself. Even though he crashed into the other side, felling a few more trees. "Let's do it Usopp!

"Yeah!" Usopp responded.

"Bird!" The bird replied with a squawk.

"Luffy! Usopp! Nami cried out in joy.

"Carue!" Vivi shouted.

"Master Broggy!" Usopp yelled stomping towards the Baroque members. "We've taken on your frustration!"

"Beat those guys up so much they lose their original forms and send them flying off somewhere!" Nami bellowed.

"Yeah! I will!" Luffy replied looking rather pissed off. "These guys spoiled the old giant guys' duel!"

"My how Navy Headquarters standards have fallen," Mr. 3 said looking at Luffy.

"Whoa! You have a weird head!"

"Quiet you!"

"It's the number 3, and it's on fire!"

"Shut up!"

"Break this pillar first Luffy!" Nami called out. "We're about to turn into wax figures!"

Luffy asked them something but Addy could not quite hear it. Zoro did and responded with how there wasn't really a problem. Except for the tiny fact that his legs were bleeding. She would probably have to fix that up once they got out of this mess.

"Yeah. I went about halfway through, I'd say," Zoro stated. Blood was dripping down off the edge of the layer. It gave Addy a sort of thrill but she squashed it down. She didn't have to go all out. Luffy was here.

"How is that no problem at all?!" Nami asked.

"For now, could you bust the pillar for us Luffy? I leave the rest to you."

"We would really appreciate it Captain," Addy added in.

"Alright, no problem!" Luffy stated. "Dunno what it is, but let's break that thing!"

"Alright!" Usopp said. "Got it! I'm a bit of a different person today!"

"Hurry it up!" Nami yelled. "We're gonna solidify!"

* * *

Jag: Oh trust me there is going to be a lot of both in the next arc as well as some in this one. Let's just say Addy is going to go through some hard times and some realizations.


	82. Burning Away Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _This was another enjoyable chapter to write. I always did enjoy this arc. There is just so much good stuff in it. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

The thing was spinning covering them in a fine layer of wax yet Addy was not worried. Her captain had come and she knew that everything was going to be okay. There seemed to be a stare down going between those on the ground. They were waiting for someone to make the first move. Meanwhile Zoro unsheathed his white sword and raised it high in the air with the tip pointing to the sky.

"Zoro! What are you doing?!" Nami asked.

"If I'm going to be solidified, I prefer this pose," he stated.

"This is no time to be playing around!" Vivi shouted. Addy rolled her eyes. She had no idea what he was doing. In case of the worst they were going to die on their own terms. Using what movement, she had Addy brought the whip handle to chin level and swished the whip so that it was going behind her where she grabbed the tail with her other hand. Once there was enough wax to hopefully freeze it in place she would be able to remove her hand. Viv looked at her flabbergasted but she just glared at her.

"I'm not playing," he replied giving a small smile as when he saw what Addy did before resuming his stoic pose.

"Anyways," Nami continued. "Do something about your leg! It's painful just looking at!"

"Then quit looking at it."

"You're the idiot who suggested cutting our legs off in this situation so we could escape!"

"That ain't true! I was going to cut'em off so we could fight."

"That's even stupider! Get serious!"

"Just shut up!"

"Honestly! You have no common sense!"

"To be fair at that point it would have been better than dying to that maniac in the name of art," Addy pointed out.

"You're doing to dramatic pose to?!" Nami asked.

"I'm not going to be frozen in fear because of this guy. And relax, as soon as we are out of here I will patch up Zoro good as new, though with a few more scars."

I've been told females dig scars after all," Zoro stated.

"Who told you that?!" Nami asked. "You really shouldn't listen to Luffy about dating advice."

Addy suppressed the urge to laugh namely because it hurt to do so. The wax was really working its way up her body.

"Hey, runt." Broggy called out. "Is that all the struggling you got?"

"Yeah," Zoro replied. "Looks like it's someone else's turn now."

"I see…"

Meanwhile the little girl had set up some sort of picnic thing. She was really unconcerned with what was going on.

"I could say the same about you, Miss Golden Week!" Mr. 3 shouted at her. Wait the little girl was his partner? What kind of Devil Fruit did she have?

"Hey." Zoro said. "If you're going to do a pose, now's your chance."

"Don't put me on your level," Nami stated. "I'm still wondering why Addy is doing it."

"I'm dying on my own terms," Addy said letting her hand go of the whip and bringing it stiffly to her side. The wax had hardened the whip enough so that it was suspended in midair.

"Mr. Bushido! Addy!" Vivi yelled. "Please be more serious about this!"

"I'm always serious," Zoro replied.

"More like stupid," Nami said.

"Like you're one to talk!" The two of them continued to bicker and Addy found it highly amusing. There two different outlooks on life always made an interesting clash. As entertaining as it was Addy hoped that Luffy would make his move soon. She was sort of getting tired of being a candle. Suddenly Usopp and the bird ran back into the jungle, ducking behind some trees. Well that's no surprise though they did manage to distract Luffy so that Mr. 3 could send out a blob of wax trapping Luffy in the same bindings they were in earlier.

"Luffy!" Vivi yelled.

"Damn," Zoro muttered. "He already gotten caught?!"

"This is Captain," Addy pointed out. "Let's see what he does with this."

"Idiot!" Nami remarked.

Mr. 3 sent out another blob, probably to lock up Luffy's hands but he dodged right on time. Landing on his hands he flipped into the air and started twirling. He stretched out one of his arms and wrapped it around the horn on Broggy's helmet several times. Using that to spin himself around and gain momentum he launched himself at the pole holding the giant spinning face up. The pole broke neatly in half.

"He did it!" Vivi and Nami shouted. Though they all soon started screaming as the giant face thing started landing towards them. If it him them they would be crushed instantly. Luckily it landed on the second layer of the cake instead causing the entire thing to rumble. Unfortunately, the thing was still spinning rapidly. Luffy was still clinging to the horn of the helmet. Apparently the thing around his legs also broke.

The four of them were now wheezing. It was becoming incredibly hard to breathe. Each breath was harder to take in than the last.

"I'm alive," Nami muttered.

"We survived," Vivi mumbled.

"That didn't help things at all!" Zoro growled.

"I think it might have hastened out demise," Addy said.

"Whew, that was dangerous!" Luffy shouted at them. "Why didn't you guys run?"

"We can't move!" the three girls shouted. "Isn't it obvious?!"

"Oh? Really? But you guys told me to break the pillar! Were you lying?" Well he wasn't exactly wrong.

"Is it really a good idea to put our lives in his hands, Mr. Bushido?" Vivi shouted.

"Don't question our Captain," Addy snapped. "He will figure it out!"

"That's the only choice we got here," Zoro pointed out. "Plus it looks like my arms are stuck now."

"Please be serious about this!" Vivi yelled.

"We are being serious you moron," Addy growled. "What do you think we are doing?! Having a festive tea party?! Relax, Captain will get you out of this!"

"Hold on," Nami murmured. "It feels like my body is hardening more and more now. I can't move at all now." Mr. 3 started laughing and Addy knew that wasn't a good sign.

"Fools!" he cackled. "With the candles closer, your hardening has sped up! Now you can become wax figures even quicker!"

"Hey!" Luffy shouted. "You guys are gonna be wax figures?"

"That's what we've been trying to tell you!" Nami yelled at him.

"Just destroy this set Luffy!" Vivi called out.

"R-Right! Okay!" he answered back.

"I told you," Mr. 3 shouted the flame on his hair becoming larger and brighter. "I won't let you interfere!" Mr. 3 left out another blob, this one shaped like a harpoon. However, that left him open for Usopp to take a shot. Unfortunately, Browncoat guy stepped in, swallowing the pellet. Luffy just managed to dodge the harpoon which broke off some of the wax off the helmet. Smoke poured out of Brown coat and Addy had a bad feeling about all of it. Everything she saw took on a sort of white haze as if she was looking at it through a tinted window. Sounds became duller and she felt tired. Really, really tired.

"He ate the Exploding Star!" Usopp shouted out though she barely heard him. The pain was becoming intolerable, she felt like she wasn't able to breath. Her entire body was frozen stiff.

"This is bad," she heard Zoro say. "It really is fast. Good thing I posed beforehand."

"You idiot," Nami shouted at him.

"Luffy! Please hurry!" Vivi yelled.

"That would be a good idea," Addy stated. Her own voice sounded strange in her ears. "I'm not sure how much longer I'm gonna…."

"Addy!" Nami and Zoro shouted at her but she was too tired to answer. Was the wax getting to her or was it the other?

"Alright!" Luffy yelled. "That pumpkin's the bad thing right?!" It did sort of look like a pumpkin. Didn't it? "Hang on! Gomu Gomu no…"

"It's no use!" Mr. 3 cried out creating a wall out of wax right in front of Luffy.

"Bazooka!" He smashed his hands straight into the wall yet it did not break. "Hey, you! Don't get in my way!"

Mr. 3 apparently disagreed and launched another glob this time capturing Luffy's arm.

"I got a mallet!" Luffy shouted. "Gomu-Gomu no… Mallet!

Mr. 3 got up another candle wall just as Luffy smashed his fist covered in wax into it. This time however it cracked and broke apart into dust sending Mr. 3 flying as Luffy's fist made contact with his face.

"Luffy!" Name yelled. "Hurry and break this set while there's still time!"

Luffy just stood there, his hat covering his face when Addy heard the last thing she expected out of him.

"Did he really just say no?" she asked. "I can't hear all that well."

"Quit joking around and hurry!" Nami shouted.

"No," Luffy repeated. So she did here it correctly the first time. What was going on with him?

"This is no time to be acting stupid!" Zoro called out.

"Luffy! Please!" Vivi added.

"Captain!" Addy got out but barely.

"What should I do?" he asked himself. "I don't really feel like saving you guys." Addy felt something wash over her that was more painful than the wax. Something that stabbed her deep in the heart. This was insane. This wasn't Luffy. Where was Sanji when you needed him?!

"What are you saying?" Nami asked.

"Hey! Luffy!" Zoro screamed. If anyone could get to Luffy it would be Zoro. "There's no time! Do something about this thing already!"

"Yeah…. I know," he mumbled. It almost sounded like he was drugged. It then hit Addy. They still had no idea what the other persons Devil Fruit ability was.

"Then, hurry!" Vivi proclaimed.

"Yeah, Luffy!" Nami added on.

"I know, but… But I don't feel like saving you…" he stated.

"Why do you keep saying that?!" Nami screamed at him. "We're the ones who are about to be wax figures! Understand?! We are about to die!"

"Yeah. But for some reason, I just can't get motivated."

"This isn't a motivation problem!" They all shouted at him.

There was an explosion below around where Usopp was. Apparently Brown coat and Lemon lady had found him. They ran into the jungle. Hopefully to go find Sanji.

"Miss Golden Week!" Vivi stated. "This is your doing!"

The girl who was munching on a biscuit looked up at them. "Colors Trap: Betrayal Black. Touch the black paint, and you'll want to betray your friends, no matter what they say."

"Paint?" Addy asked slightly dazed.

"What does she mean?!" Nami asked "What happened?! Explain?!"

"She's a realist painter who can even create real colors of emotion!" Viv answered. "Her refined sense of color can even manipulate people's minds through the use of her paints."

"Manipulate?!" Zoro questioned. "That's not good! That simpleminded idiot is already easy enough to manipulate!"

"Wait hold on," Addy said. "You knew what her Devil Fruit power is AND YOU DIDN'T BOTHER TO TELL US! Are you out of your mind or did you just want us to die?! Did you know about wax guy's powers as well?!"

"I-I didn't" Vivi started to say but Addy cut her off.

"Save it! Don't bother with any excuse! The entire reason we are in this mess is your fault!"

"Addy!" Nami hissed. "That's not fair!"

"Am I wrong," Addy asked.

Nami hesitated before speaking, "Regardless we need to get out of here. Doesn't Luffy just need to get away from that paint? Luffy! Get away from there!"

"No don't!" Vivi yelled. Addy was about ready to strangle her. "Luffy! Whatever you do, do not move from that black circle! I'm begging you!"

"Vivi! Why?!" Nami asked.

"We don't want you to save us all!" Vivi continued ignoring Nami's questioning.

"No," Luffy stated stepping back off the paint.

"I get it," Zoro said. "You made him do the exact opposite of what you said."

Luffy looked up and seemed more like himself. "Huh?!" he questioned rubbing the back of his head. "I-I was kinda weird just now!"

"Luffy! Hurry!" Vivi yelled.

"Alright! I'll save you right now!" He started swinging his fist ready to break them free when he started laughing out of nowhere. "But never mind you guys! I just wanna laugh!"

The four of them jaws dropped which was pretty much the only thing left that they could move.

"Why?!" Nami asked.

"Why, you!" Zoro growled.

"Now, what?!" Vivi wondered.

"We're screwed," Addy pronounced. Where was Usopp and Sanji when they needed them? Luffy just kept laughing hysterically. He was laughing so much he collapsed on the ground laughing. It was probably another one of the color traps.

"Now it's on his clothes," Nami pronounced. "Luffy! Hurry up and take off that clothing!"

"N-Never mind that!" he responded back. "I just feel like laughing!" He was sitting up and clutching his chest.

"Not good," Zoro muttered. "If it keeps raining down at this pace, we won't last one more minute!" Suddenly straight out of the jungle Carue came running with Usopp on its back. Brown coat man and Lemon lady were chasing after them. They all ran straight in front of Luffy and them. "Did you guys come here to play?!" Zoro yelled at them. They continued to run in circles until Carue ran directly into Luffy knocking him to the ground.

"Look!" Nami shouted. "When Usopp ran into him, the paint on his back smudged!"

"Glad you can see it," Addy mumbled. Color had leeched out of everything for Addy. Everything was a different shade of white.

"Did I wind up doing something again?" Luffy asked. He turned to face the kid. "Hey, you! Knock it off, you jerk! Shut up! Are you stupid?! Stupid!" He whirled around back to them. "Anyways, I gotta break that pumpkin!" He stretched his arms back. "Gomu-Gomu no Bazooka!" And aimed directly at the ground.

"Where are you aiming?!" Zoro shouted at him.

"You're not allowed to break it!" the girl said. "You'll make Mr. 3 angry!"

"What is this?!" Luffy yelled. He screamed towards the sky. "I can't stand you anymore! Get out of here! Gomu-Gomu no Bazooka!" But he aimed straight for the paint mark on the ground again.

"It's no good!" Nami said. "This isn't his kind of fight. All his power is useless!" As if to confirm that fact Luffy went from being super angry to drinking tea on the picnic blanket.

"Such nice tea.." he muttered.

"You idiot!" They all shouted at him.

"So what happens now?" Nami asked.

"See? I told you, you should've posed!" Zoro stated. "Too bad for you!"

"How can you still be so calm about this?!" Vivi questioned.

"Maybe because there is nothing else we can do," Addy answered. "Because you know we got trapped here because someone couldn't bother informing us on who we are actually facing," Addy answered.

"I didn't know what Mr. 3 ability was!" Vivi retorted.

"But you knew the kid's? Right, I buy that. If we get out of this we are going to have a serious discussion about continuing forward."

"What?!"

"Addy-" Nami said.

"No. I don't care. We are stuck here because she couldn't bother to tell us who we would be facing. I can take a lot of garbage but I'm drawing a line here. She is basically outright trying to kill us at this point!"'

"Luffy made a promise," Zoro stated. "I know how you feel but it is his order."

Addy growled. Zoro was unfortunately right. Once Luffy changed his mind there was no changing it back. Still there is only so much she would take. And. as the wax increased on her she could feel the heaviness against her skin. She couldn't even talk anymore just stare ahead. It was thin enough that she could barely breath through it but that wouldn't last much longer. She was without a doubt trapped, unable to do anything but watch.

Suddenly Carue and Usopp ran back into the clearing. The other two idiots didn't seem to be following them. Perhaps there was some good news after all.

"Luffy!" she heard him shout. "What are you doing?! What are you doing you idiot?!"

* * *

PippinSqueaks: Oh it will come. Particularly, in the next couple of arcs where we will not only get Chopper but Addy will go through some stuff as well.

Jag: Slight spoilers but you will see her go dark eventually. Just not for awhile. But when it does happen it is going to be big.


	83. Burning Away Part 7

_Author's Note:_

 _This was another chapter that I think went relatively smoothly. At least I enjoyed writing it. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy didn't know what she was feeling. It was like everything was dulled. Sounds were muffled, eyes were clouded only showing a world of white. It felt like a heavy membrane was covering her skin keeping her from moving. Yet she felt it seeping in, closer and closer to her lungs and getting heavier against her skin. Fatigue was building up and all she wanted to do was close her eyes and sleep. Sleep sounded so good right now.

But she fought the urge and looked at Usopp as he tried so desperately to think of a way out of this mess.

"Luffy!" he screamed still riding that stupid bird. "What are you doing you stupid idiot?!" Addy wasn't sure what was going on or what Usopp noticed but the bird suddenly jumped in the air and Usopp took aim with his trusty slingshot. Whatever he shot out created a small fireball that hit Luffy straight in the back. She briefly wondered if Luffy smelled like burning rubber or whatever a human smelled like when they caught on fire. Not that she really knew, she tried to stay away from fire as much as possible. Fire did not tend to like her.

Unfortunately, even with the wax she could hear Lemon lady laugh. Oh Ocean please don't let that be the last thing she hears. Let it be anything other than that. It seems both her and Brown coat arrived on the scene meaning that it 3 on 1. Usopp was in serious trouble. To confirm that a giant fireball appeared out of nowhere in front of Usopp knocking both him and the bird onto the ground.

Usopp struggled to get up despite his injuries. Luffy got up as well also burned. His red shirt had been turned into ash. Whatever was affecting him seemed to be gone now. Addy hoped it stayed that way and that they ended this quickly. She was getting really tired. It was hard to keep her eyes open.

"I've had enough of that paint," Luffy stated. "I refuse to let anyone else die! Now I'm mad!" Now Baroque Works was in serious trouble. They really angered her Captain. She also briefly wondered where Sanji was. Addy hoped he showed up soon as well. They could really use him right now.

"Just look at your friends now!" Brown coat guy pointed out.

"So what?!" Luffy shouted at him. "They're still alive!" Well not for much longer if someone didn't break them out soon.

"Are they, now? All they need is some of Miss Goldenweek's paint and they'll be exceptional wax figures! You're too late Straw Hat!"

Addy thought she heard the sound of a tree falling down and heard a voice that she hoped to never hear again.

"That's correct!" Mr. 3 spoke. "You're not only late, but now you can experience even more despair!" There were more sounds of trees falling and Addy got a very bad feeling. Also there was this other mechanical whirling noise that wasn't coming from the rotating thing of doom. When Mr. 3 finally came into view Addy saw what was causing all that noises. He covered himself in a rather large suit of wax with boxes gloves. Usopp and the bird immediately started freaking out while Luffy just looked at it confused. Addy did not blame him.

"Now, Miss Goldenweek!" Wax man called out. "Perform an artistic paint job on me!" There was something going on between him and the little girl and she nodded.

"Like this, I am invincible!" he shouted. Somehow Addy doubted it. "This armor is as hard as iron, and wrapped around me like velvet! My form now has no flaws!" Well except for yourself. Addy considered that a pretty big flaw.

"S-So cool!" Luffy said in absolute awe. Addy could image the sparkles around his face. Were one of the colors affecting him again?

"This is no time to be admiring him!" Usopp shouted at Luffy. "Fight!"

"Alright!" Luffy yelled back. "Gomu-Gomu no…" he pulled his fist back ready to punch the thing into smithereens. "Pistol!" His fist hit one of the boxing gloves and bounced off completely ineffective. Maybe this was going to be harder than she thought.

Wax man charged at Luffy. "Champ fight! Harvest field!" Wax man shouted swinging his fists around like the wheels on a cart. Luffy jumped out of the way and it was a good thing. Wax man ripped through the ground like it was nothing.

"Gomu-Gomu no Stamp!" Luffy shot a foot out towards the wax suit aiming for Wax man's face but he used his two fists to block the attack causing Luffy's foot to bounce right back.

"It's no use!" Wax man shouted.

"Not good!" Usopp called out. "The guy's so solid his attacks don't work!"

Luffy landed on the platform where there frozen figures stood. Addy could just see him at the edge of her vision. He jumped down and went back to attacking Wax man. Usopp meanwhile was just on the ground staring up at the death trap. Addy hoped he figured out something. Because with each moment that past, they were getting more and more hardened. At some point breaking the wax shell would kill them.

"Luffy!" Usopp shouted. "Fire melts this guy's wax! No matter how hard it is, wax is still wax! Zoro and all the others hardened only moments ago! We can save them!" Fire melts wax….? Oh yeah it does. So all Usopp and Luffy had to do was set them on fire. It took a second for Addy's brain to catch up and she started panicking. That sounded like an absolute awful idea. She did better with fire than most of her family, namely because of Riley but being set on fire was something she never wanted. Addy would almost prefer staying a wax statue.

"What?!" Luffy yelled back. "For reals?!"

"Don't admit that to them!" Wax man screamed charging back towards Luffy. "But even if you realize that now, you have neither time nor chance of winning! 30 more seconds at most! After that, their hearts will completely stop! As we speak they're probably writhing in pain with what little consciousness they have left as they experience the terror of dying!"

Usopp in a second readied his slingshot towards the wax they were trapped on but another explosion out of nowhere occurs right next to him. Luffy shouted his name as Usopp fell backwards on the ground. He looked completely done.

"Dammit!" Luffy shouted pulling his arm back. "There's no time!"

"Give it up!" Wax man said appearing directly behind Luffy. He smashed the boxing glove straight into Luffy also crushing the ground around him.

"Run!" Usopp screamed. "Just run around all the candlestick!" The bird suddenly took off running, holding something in its beak. Addy couldn't tell what it was. It continued running circles around the candlestick. She hoped there was some sort of plan here. Hopefully one not involving fire.

"Everything you try is pointless," Brown coat main shouted. Lemon lady sat on Usopp. Addy for the life of her could not remember Lemon lady's devil fruit power. Hopefully Usopp would not be harmed to badly. He had already been exploded twice what else could they do to him? Meanwhile Brown coat man was trying to shoot the bird with limited success. Addy thought she might be grateful but how hard could it be to hit a bird running in one direction? Baroque Works really needed some better members. The bird was now running all over the candlestick, jumping up on the other layers and weaving itself between each of them with Brown coat still trying to shoot it. Addy finally saw that it was a rope that it was carrying. She had a really bad feeling.

Meanwhile Wax man was still trying to fight Luffy and neither of them were making any headway. Luffy just kept dodging everything Wax man threw at him. Finally, Luffy got a lucky shot in and grabbed Wax man's hair and started dragging him along to the candle stick.

"If fire can melt them, then I'll use this fire!" Luffy shouted. Please don't. Being a wax statue wasn't so bad.

"Luffy!" Usopp yelled. "That small flame won't do it fast enough! Light Carue's rope on fire!" Oh please no.

"The bird's rope?!" No, this was a bad plan.

"It's a special rope soaked in oil!" This was more than a bad plan. This was an incredibly bad plan.

"Okay! Everyone! Wake up!" Luffy brought Wax man to the rope and Addy world lit up in flames. She could feel the wax dripping off and the heat against her skin burning her. Her eyesight starting to clear. Sounds became more vibrant though all she could hear was the roar of the fire. But most importantly her mind was focused enough to have every single instinct tell her to get away from the fire. Now! But the wax wasn't done melting yet and as much as she struggled she couldn't move.

Her mind was screaming and all she wanted to do was bolt. The fire was getting ever closer to her. If it touched…. Finally, she could feel the bonds around her start to weaken and she was able to move again breaking free of the wax. Her mind was an absolute whirl. Thoughts were not even coming to her, just a massive desire to get away. The very first thing that she did was jump over the flames hoping for the fastest escape. As luck would have it she ran directly into Lemon lady who was also in the air for some reason. Addy smiled. Now that she was out of the fire her brain was back to its usual tipsy self.

"Lautan ombak remuk!" she wrapped her whip around Lemon lady and crashed into her at full force sending both of them to the ground. Luckily Addy had something to land on. Lemon lady made for a cushy landing spot. It also ensured that Lemon lady would not be getting up again. Hopefully ever. As Addy got up and dusted herself off she took a few steps back away from the fire. She could feel the heat from here and it absolutely unnerved her. She wanted to be as far away as possible. Hopefully in a nice river. Addy also saw that Nami and Vivi landed nearby as well. Vivi looked basically unharmed which was an absolute shame. Nami did as well though she was missing a shirt.

"That was hot!" Nami stated. "Couldn't you have done it a different way?"

Usopp got up looking rather worse than the three of them. He was bleeding from his head slightly but didn't look like anything major.

"Don't be fussy!" he huffed. "Just be thankful you were saved!"

"You're right. Thanks!"

"Yeah, we are amazingly grateful," Addy said quickly. "Can we get out of here, like now."

"This doesn't seem real…." Vivi stated. "We're alive!"

"Yes it's wonderful, but can we get away from the all-consuming fire? That would be great," Addy panted. If they didn't take off now than she was going to leave without them.

"The wax melted," Brown coat stated. Really? He was still around? "What a pain! We can't afford to screw up our mission any further!" He took out a gun and pointed it towards Vivi and Nami. Addy gulped and felt her hands start to shake. If he wasn't by the flames it would not be a problem but so close to them.

"Mr.5," Usopp called out. "Kayaku Boshi!" He shot the pellet and Brown coat swallowed it down.

"Fool! I've shown several times that explosives don't work on me! I'm an explosive man!" Well a lot of the explosions made sense now.

"You took the bait!" Brown coat started looking rather uncomfortable. Sweat started pouring down his face and Addy suspected it wasn't from the fire. "So sorry! I'm a liar, you see! That wasn't a Gunpowder Star. It was a Deluxe Tabasco Star!"

Brown coat man was an interesting shade of red and flames burst out of his mouth shooting high into the sky. "Spicy!" Brown coat man shouted. Just how hot was that thing? Addy hoped she never found out. Usopp was chucking to himself while the rest of them stood there not moving unlike what Addy wanted.

"I already proved its effectiveness the hard way!" Usopp stated. Did that mean he tried it on himself? The poor soul.

"Damn you pirates," Brown coat man shouted at them. He was on his hands and knees. "How dare you make a mockery of me?!" He got back up and looked beyond pissed. "Time to blow up in a full body explosion! There won't even be bone fragments left!" He started chasing after Usopp who took off running. Unfortunately, he was not fast enough and Brown coat man grabbed onto him. However Brown coat man made one fatal mistake. He moved away from the fire so that now Addy could get at him. Looked like Nami and Vivi were preparing to fight as well.

"No! Stop!" Usopp yelled out struggling all he could.

"Usopp!" Nami called out holding her staff.

"No! I'm sorry! I won't do it anymore!" Usopp proclaimed. All Addy had to do was close the distance and she would have Brown coat man. Just as she was about to lash out with her whip she got this dark feeling and stopped. She looked around for its source and felt it somewhere in the flames. She chuckled lightly and refurled her whip. Looks like Zoro got this covered.

Zoro burst out of the flames all three of his swords ablaze. He was like a fireball coming straight towards them. It also seemed that he himself was on fire. Wearing his bandanna Addy almost did mistake him for a demon. She moved out of the way so that she would not be caught in the middle. "Yaki Oni…" Zoro growled. "Giri!" Addy did not even see the swords movements it was so fast but somehow Brown coat man himself was on fire. Zoro landed behind him on one knee swords still burning. Brown coat man collapsed backwards and she could hear the click as Zoro sheathed his swords. This fight was over.

"Flaming swords aren't too shabby," Zoro stated. Just as he said that the flames went out and Addy breathed a sigh of relief. At least some of the fire was gone. Zoro himself looked badly burned and the wounds on his legs were still bleeding. Addy rushed towards him rummaging through her bag to see if there anything she could use to stitch him up.

"Zoro!" Nami shouted as Addy sat down next to him.

"Looks who makes the dramatic entrance," Addy said placing her hand lightly on his shoulder. He collapsed into her, whether it was because of exhaustion or the fact that he wanted to be closer to her, Addy didn't know. Maybe both though judging by the grin on his face it was definitely more of the latter.

Broggy also stood up also partially on fire. Addy knew this was a bad plan. Due to that he collapsed back on the ground again causing a rumble. Which also explained a few things.

Zoro stood up fully without assistance so he couldn't be that badly injured. Or perhaps he was just really good at faking it.

"Yo," Zoro said. "Good to see you're alive."

"Yeah." Broggy replied placing himself in a sitting position. Though his excitement was short lived as he turned towards Dorry. Addy wondered how he managed to stay asleep this entire time. Broggy turned himself back towards them. "That leaves two foes left."

"Captain will take care of them," Addy said pushing Zoro towards a log and forcing him to sit down so that she could look at his injuries. Namely the cuts in his legs. Also sitting down on the log she took one leg up and placed it on her lap. The cut was pretty deep and Addy sighed. There was no way this wasn't going to scar. Pull out the thread and sterilized needle that she kept in case she started sewing Zoro up. "We have nothing to be worried about."Lautan ombak remuk- Ocean Waves smashed

* * *

Lautan ombak remuk: Ocean waves smashed

Review Corner:

seblackburn4: I think that is going to be a bit of an understatement. You will see when we get there.

ShikiRiian: I actually thought about doing that but Addy is going to put the crew through a lot of grief very shortly. Maybe I will save that idea for later. As for her dark side we are actually a long way off before we get to see that. But I think, or at least hope that the wait will be worth it.


	84. Burning Away Part 8

_Author's Note:_

 _So this is the end of the arc. This has been a fun one to write but the next one is going to be great. Expect heavy plot developments in the near future as well as some questions answered. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

It wasn't a moment after that Broggy burst into tears which created a rainbow in the sky. He was crying so much that he was actually sitting in a large puddle. She briefly wondered about the myth of giant's tears actually being able to create lakes was true. Addy wasn't fully sure what was going on. At least it helped put out the last of the fire much to her relief. Zoro was also being a cooperative patient so things were working out. She had moved on to the other leg and was stitching that up. Luffy had also returned to them after defeating Wax man, so things were really working out. Now if only she didn't drain her flask earlier.

"Whoa!" Luffy remarked. "Look behind him! A rainbow! There's a rainbow!" For some reason everyone was covering their ears except for Zoro. Addy suspected that the giant was pretty loud but Addy's hearing was impaired and this time not from the wax. She tugged at her ears. It seems like her symptoms are getting worse. Perhaps she had less time than she thought.

"You okay?" Zoro asked looking at her with soft eyes.

She gave him a weak smile, "Yeah I'm fine." She jabbed the needle in harder than she needed to in order to get him off track. Worked like a charm.

"Even the way he cries is big!" Nami stated.

"It's practically a waterfall!" Zoro added in.

"He's a giant. What do you expect?" Addy asked.

"I understand how you feel, Master Broggy!" Usopp remarked. Addy glanced towards him and he was also crying. What was going on? The tears had another effect in that Dorry was finally waking up. A little late but the problem was over so there was no real reason to complain. Well yes she did but not at the giant.

Dorry slowly sat up using his sword as a crutch. Everyone called out in surprise once they noticed except for her and Zoro. Broggy eyes were even bugging out.

"Dorry…" Broggy muttered. "How are you…"

"It seems I blacked out," Dorry answered. "It's probably…. because of the weapons…."

"Weapons?!" Usopp questioned wiping the tears off his face. "Oh yeah! Not even Elbaf weapons could keep up with two giants fighting to the death for a 100 years straight!" Well that explains why Amora hadn't seen them for a while. She always wondered where they went. They were valuable customers. Usopp let out a sigh. "Talk about crazy. It's a huge miracle!"

Broggy wrapped an arm around Dorry embracing him in a hug.

"Hey, Broggy!" Dorry said. "Don't hold on to me! That hurts my wounds!"

"I'm so glad you're alive, friend of mine!" Broggy replied. Wait did they think he was dead? That explains a lot. The two of them started laughing just enjoying the fact that both of them were alive.

"Miracle, my ass," Zoro stated. "It's only natural. The fact that those weapons are still intact after 100 years of constant bashing and clanging is even crazier. As are their owners. "

Broggy looked up towards the sky and smiled remarking, "What a wonderful day today is! I thank you, God of Elbaf!"

"Oh, Broggy?" Dorry asked. Broggy brought his head back down to look at him. "Was chopping me down and knocking me out that happy for you?"

"You dimwit! That ain't what I'm saying!"

He clapped Dorry on the shoulder. Dorry brought a hand up to his shoulder and winced.

"Oww!" Dorry grumbled. "Don't touch my wounds!" Dorry punched Broggy as he was laughing. Addy could hear the sound of the impact. Giants were ridiculously strong. Broggy then punched him back and what started was a playful fist fight. Or maybe an actual fight.

"You want some of this?!" Dorry asked

"Yeah!" Broggy replied clashing their helmets together. "I'll wipe the floor with ya!" The two of them stood up. Addy wondered how they managed to captain a crew together considering they just wanted to fight each other all the time. The two of them were just standing there grumbling at each other.

"Cool! Cool! Cool!" Luffy remarked basically jumping up and down with excitement.

"Why are you guys fighting again?!" Nami asked.

"Because, their giants," Addy answered. "It's sort of what they do. It's like expecting Captain not to eat meat. Though perhaps the two of you should rest and fully recover first. Want an equal fight and all."

"You got that right," Dorry said. "I think I have a few bandages around." Together all of them followed Dorry to his place which turned out to be right next to that white rock thing. Though getting a closer look at it, Addy thought it was more bone than rock. Addy had finished stitching up Zoro so he was able to walk around yet he still stuck close by to her. Luffy and Usopp along with the bird sat on the grass while her and Zoro settled on a nearby rock. Nami and Vivi remained standing.

"So as much fun as all that was, does anyone know how long it takes a Log pose to set?" Addy asked. "Because as long as we are on this island Baroque Works is probably going to be coming after us again. Even if we hand Princess over I don't think they will let us get away."

"It takes about a year here," Broggy stated.

Addy shrugged. "Okay then, I guess we will just sail off and follow the current. We should hit another island that hopefully won't have such a long set time. Almost no chance for it to lead us to Alabasta though so we might as well leave Princess here."

"We are not leaving her here," Nami stated. "You can get us to another island?"

"Oh that I can definitely do."

"You underestimate the Grand Line," Vivi said. "It holds many challenges and-"

"I know the Grand Line like I know Merry. I know its twists and turns and many moods better than you can possibly dream of. People who have sailed the Grand Line their entire lives do not know it as well as I do. If anything it's you who underestimates its power. So when I say I can get us to another island, you can be damn sure I can get us to another island."

"Easy Addy," Zoro said. "You're still not allowed to kill her."

"Captain?" Addy asked. "Since she basically almost led to all of us dying because she couldn't bother informing us what we were actually up against-"

"I didn't know," Vivi objected.

Addy just shut her down and continued, "Can we actually just get rid of her? Preferably slowly and painfully."

Luffy just stared at her for a moment before shaking his head. "We are all alive right? So no harm done. Besides we won't have had such a great adventure without her."

"That's not the point!"

"Relax," Zoro said clapping a hand on her shoulder. "Captain's orders."

Addy rolled her eyes and sighed. Whatever, it didn't really matter. Eventually Princess would show her true colors and prove Addy right. It was only a matter of time.

"So those guys were after you then?" Dorry asked. "I wonder why they attacked us?"

"They were after the bounties on your head," Vivi answered.

"Bounties?" Dorry wondered before bursting out laughing. "We had completely forgotten about the bounties on our heads!"

"But I was the reason they came to this island in the first place…." Nami reached over and pinched her cheek. "Oww!"

"Let's have none of that," Nami stated.

"Yeah, Vivi! What're you so down in the dumps for?" Luffy asked munching on something. Him, Usopp and the bird got their hands on some crackers. "Want a rice cracker?"

"Hey!" Nami exclaimed. "Where did you get those?"

"Alright! For now, let's have a rice cracker party!"

"Rice crackers aren't very exciting," Usopp pointed out.

"Really?" Luffy asked. "We can even make toasts with them!"

"See? Does anyone blame you?" Nami asked.

"Yes!" Addy said.

Nami rolled her eyes. "Besides Addy, does anyone blame you?"

"Kampai!" Luffy exclaimed breaking two crackers together and letting the pieces fall onto the ground.

Usopp picked them up and started dusting them off. "C'mon," he remarked. "Don't do that! Geez! You can't waste food like that!"

"What're you doing?!" Luffy yelled reaching for the broken rice cracker in Usopp's hand. "Who said you could have mine?!" They started rolling around on the ground wrestling for the cracker. "Give it! It's mine!"

"Who says?!" Usopp retorted.

It was then that Nami winched and Addy turned towards her. Zoro also noticed something was up. Nami had a rather large looking bruise on her side.

"What's wrong?" Zoro asked.

Addy walked up to Nami. "You alright there?" she asked. "That doesn't look good."

"Nothing," Nami said scratching it. "Just a bug."

"Well we'll keep an eye on it."

"Still, this trouble with the Log. When Addy gets us to the next island there is no guarantee we will be on the path to Alabasta," Zoro stated. "Is pretty serious stuff."

"Yeah! It's definitely no laughing matter!" Nami remarked.

"You saved us," Broggy said. "We would like to thank you in some way."

Luffy hopped onto a rock. Apparently he had defeated Usopp. "Oh, in that case, you old guys can do something about our Log!"

Broggy sighed and Dorry continued speaking. "I'm afraid Logs are the only thing we can't help you with."

"Nami dear! Addy sweet! Vivi precious! And you other bums!" Sanji called out. Even the smoke from his cigarette was coming up hearts. Looks like he finally found them, very much too late. Addy got up and started walking towards him. Usopp and the bird looked just as angry as she was. He was walking towards Nami and Vivi with open arms and Addy decided to stop beside them. He would come to them.

"Hey! Sanji!" Luffy shouted waving.

"You're okay! Thank goodness!"

"That jerk suddenly shows up only after we needed help!" Usopp grumbled.

Sanji meanwhile seemed completely oblivious to his surroundings. That was until he admitted a gasp and ran up to the giants. "What the hell?!" he asked. "Are you Mr. 3?!"

"Hey!" Nami remarked. "How do you know about Mr. 3?" Sanji turned towards Nami and his eyes turned to hearts once he saw her condition.

"Nami dear," he clapped his hands together. "You're so titillating!"

"Feel like getting slugged?" she held up her fist. Addy beat her to it and walked up to Sanji and punched him straight in the nose. Though she didn't actually put her full force into it so all he had was a bloody nose.

"That's for being late, you moron," she stated.

"My apologizes, Addy sweet," Sanji said before taking off his jacket. "Now, now, Nami dear. You'll catch a cold dressed like that." Addy smirked. Ever the gentleman as he put the coat around Nami's shoulders. "Here you are."

"Thanks," Nami replied.

"All that aside," Sanji sat down on a nearby log. "I just finished talking with Mr. 0 via Den Den Mushi."

"You talked to the boss?!" Vivi shouted. It looked like she was about to have a panic attack.

"Yeah. I found this weird hideout in the jungle, you see. He seemed to think I was Mr. 3 so I told him I eliminated everyone." Addy just blinked at him. That was actually rather brilliant. Too bad he was using his ideas to protect Princess instead of trying to end her.

"So that means he thinks we're dead?!"

"So we're finally free of people chasing us, but we can't go anywhere!" Usopp shouted.

"Can't go anywhere?" Sanji asked. "Do we still have business on this island? Just after I managed to get ahold of this, too… He proceeded to take something out of his back pocket and all their jaws dropped when they saw what he had. An Eternal Pose to Alabasta. Once Addy recovered she got a wicked grin on her face. Perhaps there was a way for everyone to be happy. Sanji looked somewhat shocked by their expressions. "Eh? What?"

"It's an Eternal Pose to Alabasta!" Luffy exclaimed. Him, Nami Usopp and the bird started jumping up and down with joy. Vivi ran up to hug him and he looked like he was having the time of his life. Addy meanwhile took the Eternal Pose out of his hand. With this she would be able to sail them to Alabasta with no problems particularly with Nami's weather sense. However, there was something else on her mind.

"Alirght!" Luffy called out. "Let's have a rice cracker party!" He clicked his two rice crackers with Nami's.

"Oh no, Luffy!" Usopp remarked. "We only have three left. We can't have a rice cracker party!"

"What?!"

"You know this is no time for that!" Nami remarked.

"Nami is right about that," Addy said holding the Eternal Pose in her hand. "We have something we need to discuss."

"What is it Addy?" Luffy asked turning towards her. She had his full attention.

"Look I know that I'm the only one who wants to see Princess dead," Addy stated. "However I am willing to compromise. Due to Sanji's actions we are free from our obligation. Baroque Works thinks we are dead and I have no inclination to prove them wrong. Therefore, it would be counterintuitive to continue to travel to Alabasta."

"But-" Vivi said. Addy held up her hand.

"Therefore I propose that we dump Princess off at the nearest inhabited island with a boat and give her the Eternal Pose and we continue on our way towards Raftel. That way we all get what we want."

"You can't," Vivi argued. "That might take me even longer. Every moment counts."

"I can't?!" Addy snapped. "Remind me which one of us is sailing Merry. Besides last time I checked that was the Captain's decision!"

"Addy enough of this nonsense," Nami said. "Look I don't know why you hate Vivi."

"How about the fact that she is a noble! That's enough of a reason in of itself!"

"That's not enough of a reason to-"

"I'm not going to let your blind spot for this girl kill you all!" Nami glared daggers at her and Addy stared right back. She was not backing down. Not on this. "I won't allow it."

"Is there anything I can do to make you trust me?" Vivi asked coming right up to Addy. Addy backed away a few steps.

"Vivi…" Nami said softly. "This is on Addy…"

"No," Addy answered wrapping a hand around her locket. "There is nothing you can do because I know what you are really like. Eventually you will make a mistake and show your true colors. I'm just trying to make sure they don't get hurt when you do. Though if you wanted to give yourself some leeway than you would take the deal I just offered."

Vivi shook her head, "I can't do that. I need to get back to my people as quick as possible."

"Figures!" Addy snarled. "The final decision rests on you Captain."

Luffy stared at her with his owl like eyes. She almost expected anger, or rage. Instead he just looked sad. He walked over towards her and grasped the hand that held her locket.

"This all has to do with your locket doesn't it," he whispered in her ear. Addy flinched. It still surprised her how perceptive he really was. She gave a nod. "I don't know what happened. But it won't happen again."

"You can't say that," Addy whispered a tear falling down her face. "Not as long as she is on board."

"We said we were going to take her to Alabasta. Help me to do that."

"Captain…" Addy shuddered and felt wobbly. Her heart was racing and her head pounding. She wondered if she was dying right then and there. But no it wasn't time yet. She just looked deep into Luffy's eyes and she knew the answer. It was the only answer.

"As you wish," she said. Luffy had a beaming smile and it made Addy smile as well. It was absolutely contagious.

He clapped a hand on his hat and turned towards the giants. "Alright, round old guy and giant old guy! We're gonna go now!"

"Oh, I see," Broggy stated. "Well, you do seem to be in a hurry."

"That's too bad, but we won't stop you," Dorry added in. "I hope your homeland is okay."

"Yes!" Vivi sighed taking a glance at Addy but Addy paid her no attention. She lost this fight and she lost it hard. All she could do was ignore Vivi and hope that the Straw Hats were prepared for when the inevitable happened. "Thank you!"

"See ya!" Luffy called out walking into the jungle. Nami and Vivi were already back in, most likely leading the way too Merry. "Don't die anymore!"

"Master!" Usopp shouted. "I will visit Elbaf someday!"

"You'll see," Sanji stated. "Mine's way bigger than yours." Right they had a hunting competition.

"You wish!" Zoro replied. Those two were behind everyone else except for Addy. Addy decided to straggle behind them. She didn't fit in anymore. At least that is what she planned until she felt Nami yank her back into the group. She hooked an arm around hers so Addy could not exactly escape. Vivi was busy talking with Luffy. Probably about her. Regardless her and Nami were in there own little world.

"Nami?" Addy asked. "Aren't you mad?"

"Not really," she replied. "I understand. I used to hate pirates you know."

"And now you are one? I don't exactly plan on becoming a noble anytime soon."

Nami gently punched her shoulder. "That's not what I meant. I used to think pirates were the scum of the earth until Luffy changed my mind."

"If you are suggesting that Princess is going to change my stance on nobles than the wax has turned your brain into mush."

"Just try talking to her. Maybe something will change."

"Doubtful. I am just going to continue the rest of the voyage pretending she isn't there."

Nami sighed and shook her head, "Suit yourself."

It didn't take them long to reach the ship. Merry was overjoyed when they returned and asked Addy to tell her everything that happened. With a slight chuckle Addy promised she would tell her everything when the others were asleep. Meanwhile Sanji and Zoro argued about their hunting competition.

"See?!" Zoro remarked. "Mine's far huger than yours!" Both of them were standing on their respective kills glaring at each other.

" _I think they both look about the same,_ " Merry stated.

"They are guys. This is what they do," Addy responded she was standing the other side of the deck away from the others just observing the chaos. She would be ready when they needed her.

"Look closer!" Sanji shouted getting right into Zoro's face. "My lizard's bigger!"

"Are you blind or something?! My rhino's way bigger!"

" _This is never going to stop is it?"_ Merry asked.

"Nope," Addy answered. "Better strap in."

" _Though you never know. Grief does some odd things to people. They might never recover. Particularly Zoro. You are his first true love after all._ "

"Okay first of all, they are human. They will be sad for like a year or a few months and then they'll recover. Second of all, Zoro is not in love with me."

" _That's not what I heard him say."_

"What?"

" _He talks to his white sword you know_."

"I don't need to know this."

" _And anyway. He said that he was falling for you and he asked the sword if it was okay. So he may technically not be in love yet but he is getting there._ "

"Why are you telling me this?"

" _Perhaps because it will help you understand why you need to stay around. And not you know continue drinking!"_

Addy stared somewhat guiltily at the bottle in her hand. Grabbing it was the first thing she did as soon as she got on board. She just couldn't help it. She needed that fix. "How do I know you're not lying to me?"

" _I would not play with your emotions like that! You just don't know how much you mean to them. Nami was saying to Vivi earlier-"_

"Enough Merry. I'm done with this conversation. So either stop talking about it or I'm going to shut you out."

" _You're impossible."_

"It doesn't really matter," Luffy said. That brought Addy back to the world. "They both look yummy!"

"You shut up!" Zoro and Sanji shouted at him. The two of them continued bickering, neither one of them reaching a conclusion. Everyone else was on board and ready to go.

"How long are you gonna keep at that?" Nami asked. "We don't need all of it, so cut up what we do need so we can set sail!"

"Nami's right," Addy called out walking towards the helm. "The tide is doing some strange things. We are going to have to leave now unless we want to spend the night."

"Yes Nami dear, Addy sweet!" Sanji yelled.

"Hey, Usopp!" Zoro said. "I'm clearly the winner, right?!"

"I don't really care," Usopp answered.

"Addy?" Zoro called to her.

"It's not like I can eat any of it," Addy answered. "If you guys catch Sea Kings then I'll judge."

"Can't you call it a tie?" Vivi asked.

"There are no ties in a challenge!" Zoro stated.

"Hurry it up!" Nami shouted at them. That startled Sanji and Zoro into action. Nami could be scary when she wanted to be.

Addy was at the helm as the sails unfolded. Zoro lifted up the anchor and they were all ready to go.

"Set sail!" Luffy shouted and off they went, back into open Ocean. They were heading straight towards the western end of the island. According to the Eternal Pose at least that is where they should go. Addy handed it to Nami since she was the navigator. The rest of the crew was arguing about how much meat they brought aboard. Or rather how Luffy wished they had brought more.

" _There is already a lot_ ," Merry said. " _I feel like I'm lower in the water than usual._ "

"That feeling won't last long," Addy replied. "Not with Captain on board."

"Look, it's the old guys!" Luffy shouted. "They came to see us off!"

" _Who are they?!"_ Merry asked.

"Oh they are the giants we helped out," Addy answered.

" _What_?!"

"Ahead is a great obstacle," Broggy spoke. He was so loud Addy could even hear him inside.

"That prevents people who come to this island from reaching the next," Dorry continued. "You fought desperately to protect our pride."

"As such no matter what matter of enemy there may be…"

"We will not let them destroy your pride, friends!"

"Have faith in us, and continue straight ahead! Straight ahead no matter what happens!"

"Got it!" Luffy shouted. "You hear Addy?!"

"Got it, Captain!" Addy answered holding the pole steady. Go straight no matter what. Sounded like an easy enough task.

"We'll go straight ahead, no matter what!" Addy could feel the shift from river to sea. Whatever was going to happen was going to occur soon.

"This is goodbye!" Broggy pronounced.

"Let's meet again someday." Dorry added.

"Without fail."

"Look!" Nami shouted. "Up ahead!"

" _It's a giant fish_!" Merry shouted. " _Addy_!"

"We are going to stay straight," Addy said. Which was easier said than done. The currents were pulling Merry all over the place. There was a great disturbance in the water. But Addy kept her straight. No fish was going to defeat her.

"There you are, Island Eater!" Dorry called out.

"You will open the path in the name of Elbaf!" Broggy stated. Both of the giants roared pouring all of their power into their weapons. The rest of her crew, including Merry started screaming as the fish revealed itself.

" _A-A giant goldfish_!" Merry exclaimed.

"Addy! Work the rudder!" Nami yelled. "Hurry! We're going to get eaten!"

"Can't" Addy shouted back. "I'm supposed to go straight ahead no matter what! Right, Captain?!"

"Yeah!" Luffy answered. "Of course!"

"Don't be stupid!" Nami screamed. "This won't be like what happened with Laboon!"

" _I think Nami is right about this_!" Merry added on.

"Captain's orders," Addy said keeping them straight on course. Everyone else was still shouting on deck and the bird came running into the room cowering under the table.

" _We are about to enter the beast_!"

"Let's see where this goes!"

Addy felt everything rumble and shift as the fish closed its mouth trapping them in darkness. Merry pitched and was tossed around and Addy felt as if they were falling, following a current of water down an unknown passageway.

"Straight ahead!" Usopp screamed. "Straight ahead!"

"What are you talking about?!" Nami yelled at him. "We've already been eaten!"

"Straight ahead!" Luffy also called out. "Straight ahead!"

Suddenly Addy felt the ship blasted forward as a giant beam of light exploded behind them. And then they were flying through the air with no water beneath them and Merry screaming the entire time.

"Keep straight," Addy said keeping ahold of the pole. She was going to have to work the landing though most of it would be based on luck. "Best advice I heard in a while."

* * *

ShikiRiian: Oh a good portion of this story is going to be angst. We are going to hit a large block of it soon. Addy does not exactly attract happiness around her. I wouldn't describe the current ending as sad, though more bittersweet. But we will see what happens.

RedHairedOctavia: Its good to be back. I missed writing this story.


	85. Lost in Snowfall Part 1

Author's Note:

Okay first off sorry for the long hiatus. Life decided to get super busy on me for a while so I didn't have any time to write this then lost motivation that I have regained. I have no idea when the next update is going to be but fear not I have not given up. I am going to see this to the end and things are ready to be kicked into high gear. I hope your ready for it.

I do not own One Piece.

* * *

"We're flying out of it," Luffy shouted gleefully. "Don't look back! We're going straight ahead! Huge! It's so huge!"

" _It looks like the very sea has been cut_ ," Merry exclaimed. " _What are those people?!"_

"Giants," Addy answered.

" _Would love to see where they come from."_ Merry landed gracefully back into the water, thanks in part to Addy guidance. With Luffy as her Captain she had the feeling that she was going to have to learn how to guide Merry through the air as well as water. At least she would if she was going to live. She gripped the wheel slightly tighter. It would all be over soon. As she heard the traces of the Giants laughter she let out a small smile. The Straw Hats would all be alright, particularly with their ability to make friends.

…

They were sailing for a few hours in relative peace, as peaceful as you can get when the crew is the Straw Hats. The seagulls were squawking overhead and Usopp was continuing his declaration about going to see Elbaf. Luffy was agreeing with him enthusiastically, though if it promised adventure Luffy would pretty much go anywhere. So much so that they started singing a song about it when Addy was hit with a full on sense of dread. It curled around her like tendrils tightening its grip. There was death aboard this ship. She let go of the helm and rushed to the deck only to see Nami kneeling on the ground against the mast. Luffy and Usopp were dancing on the railing but Addy paid them no heed as she walked up to Nami.

"They sure are full of energy," Nami muttered. Addy placed her hand against Nami's forehead. She was burning up and her eyes looked glazed over.

"I'm getting you to bed," Addy said. "There is something wrong with you."

Nami tried to wave her off, "I'm fine."

"I'm not taking no for an answer. If I have to pick you up and take you there I will." She was breathing heavily, and her normally pale skin was red as if her body was fighting something off.

"I am suddenly exhausted after everything that's happened."

"It's more than that," Addy replied. She picked Nami up and leaned her against her shoulder. Nami couldn't even support her own weight.

" _Addy is something going on_?" Merry asked.

"I'm pretty sure you are sick, like really sick," Addy said. She could feel death coming off of Nami. This wasn't just some cold or even the flu. This was something bad. As soon as Nami was in bed she was going to talk to Luffy about finding a doctor.

"What about navigation?" Nami asked holding up the Eternal Pose.

"Princess," Addy called out. As much as she hated her she was also there third best navigator. With Nami ill and Addy looking after her, it was left up to Vivi. She came right away. "Can you watch the Eternal Pose?"

"Sure," she said looking surprised as Addy handed the device to her. "Something wrong?"

"Nami has come down with something. I'm going to look after her for a while. Get me only if it is an emergency."

Vivi looked forlornly at the device. Nami noticed something was off and smiled. "Now you can finally return to Alabasta," she said. "Well, assuming we can make it their safely of course."

"Yes. I must return! After all, I'm…" She seemed to drift off and she clutched the Eternal Pose tighter. A look of determination came across her face. "I will return to Alabasta, alive." She had also attracted the attention of Usopp and Luffy. Even they noticed the waves of determination coming off her.

It was Sanji who finally broke it. "There's no need to push yourself so hard Vivi precious." She looked up. Sanji was carrying a platter of various pastries in one hand and what looked like fish balls on the other. "You have me!" He leaned down and held out the pastry platter in front of her and the fish ball one in front of Addy. "Today's relaxing sweets. How about some petit fours? And for you Addy sweet I rolled up some of our sweetest fish. For drinks you have a choice of coffee or tea."

"Sanji…" She smiled at him gratefully. However, food could not be out for long without attracting the attention of Luffy and Usopp. Soon they were staring at the plate, their mouths drooling. The bird was also with them.

"Yours is in the kitchen!" Sanji shouted at them. They immediately raced off up the stairs. Zoro had absolutely no interest, still lifting weights on deck. The fact that he couldn't cut the wax really bothered him.

"I am gratefully for you making all this Sanji," Addy said. "But can you make Nami some tea?"

"But of course Addy sweet. Anything I can do to help." He raced off and Addy started guiding Nami back into her room. This time she wasn't complaining in the slightest. It was only a moment but Nami was already getting sicker. Sweat was dripping from her forehead and he whole body was turning a shade of sickly red. She was panting heavily, heat radiating off her body.

"I'll get you into bed soon," Addy said.

"Is she alright?" Vivi asked pressing her hand against Nami's forehead.

"No, she's not. I need to get her to bed now!"

"Everyone, come here! This is bad!" Vivi shouted attracting the attention of the entire crew. Addy should have done that sooner but her mind was fuzzy, body wobbly. She was feeling rather unwell herself. Her time was coming closer.

"Huh?" Luffy asked. "What is it Vivi?"

"Nami has a terrible fever!"

"Eh!" Sanji yelled pushing Usopp and Luffy out of the way. "Nami dear does?!" She was getting weaker each moment in Addy's arms. Whatever this was, it was bad. Luffy, Usopp, Sanji and the bird came around to look at her, each with expressions of concern.

"Let me get her into bed," Addy said shoving them aside lightly. They parted and Addy took her time walking Nami towards the bedroom, careful not to jostle her. Without much hassle, she managed to get Nami lying down in the bedroom. The others followed right behind her, with Vivi coming in last carrying a bowel of water and a towel. She placed by Nami's bedside, knelled down and started soaking the towel.

"Is Nami dear going to die?!" Sanji whimpered tears streaming down his face. "Is she, Addy sweet? Vivi precious?" Addy didn't have the heart to tell him that she was. Luffy and Usopp looked stern, though Addy could tell that they were both worried. Nami was breathing harder as if each breath was a struggle.

Vivi wringed out the towel, "It's most likely the climate," she said. Addy had to roll her eyes. This wasn't climate sickness considering it didn't exist. Not to this level. "One of the obstacles all sailors who enter the Grand Line run into." She placed the towel on Nami's forehead. "Is illness caused by abnormal weather. There are countless stories of tough, notorious pirates suddenly dying from this. Carelessness makes even the slightest case deadly."

Sanji started crying even louder, tears streaming even faster. He brought his hand up to wipe away the tears, "Nami dear!"

"Is there anyone on this ship with any medical knowledge at all?" Vivi asked.

Luffy and Usopp pointed to Addy. Sanji looked at her with watery eyes hopefully. Addy shook her head, "I don't really know anything," she stated. "I mostly dealt with injuries when I was in the med bay. What I can tell you is that it isn't caused by climate change."

" _What is it then if not climate change?_ " Merry asked.

"Climate sickness is actually a myth. The most you'll get is a major cold. It became popular because people started dying and no one knew the cause so climate took the blame. In reality there are so many things in the Grand Line that can kill you that if you are not an absolutely brilliant doctor trained in the Grand Line, you can't figure it out." It then hit Addy what could be causing this. Carefully she lifted up Nami's shirt and confirmed her suspensions. Addy hissed. The bite from before was massively inflamed and looked to be oozing. It was beyond infected. They needed a doctor.

"But eating meat makes sickness go away!" Luffy said a smile on his face. Addy trembled. He had no idea how serious this situation was. "Right, Sanji?"

"I can make some basic food meant for sick people," Sanji said his voice soft. He had stopped crying. "But that's entirely in the nursing territory. There's no guarantee it will make her better." Sanji turned his head away from Luffy and looked at Nami downcast. "Besides, I normally put 100 times more care into Nami dear, Addy sweet, and Vivi precious's meals than I do with yours. I serve them fresh meat and vegetables, for balanced nutrition. And I give all the rotting stuff to you guys."

He pointed at Usopp and Usopp slapped his hand, "Hey, now!" he grumbled.

"It's still good, though!" Luffy exclaimed laughing.

"In any case," Sanji said. "As long as I'm this ship's cook, there'll be no problems whatsoever in terms of getting a balanced diet. But there are different kinds of meals for sick people. What are her symptoms? What does she need? I can't make that call…."

"Then she can just eat it all!" Luffy remarked.

They all gave Luffy an odd stare. "She's sick because she doesn't have the energy for that!" Sanji remarked.

Vivi, who was checking Nami's temperature pulled the thermometer out of her mouth. "40 degrees C?! Her fever's gone up again!"

"And it will keep going up," Addy said. "Sanji I know there isn't much you can do but is there anything you can make that would help boost her immune system. It won't cure her but it might buy her some time."

"There'll be doctors when we get to Alabasta, right?!" Usopp asked. "How much longer will it take Vivi?"

"I don't know, Vivi answered. "But one week is out of the question."

"She is not going to make even that," Addy added in quietly. Only Vivi heard her. "I'd give her a few days at most." At the rate Nami was deteriorating, she had an even shorter amount of time than Addy did. Vivi looked up at her alarmed.

"Is being sick that bad?" Luffy asked turning to the others.

"Dunno." Both Usopp and Sanji answered tilting their heads. "Never been sick."

"Who in the world are you guys?!" Vivi yelled flabbergasted. "Of course it's bad! 40 degree C fevers don't happen every day! This is a life-threatening illness." That finally got to them as it suddenly dawned on them what they were dealing with. They all started panicking, turning a shade of blue. Sanji was sobbing again, Usopp running around the room screaming, the bird chasing after him, Luffy waving his arms wildly around and stamping his foot. It was chaos.

"Stop that!" Vivi shouted. "Be quiet!"

"Let's find a doctor to help Nami!" Luffy yelled.

"Okay! Just calm down! You're going to make her illness even worse!"

"No," Nami whimpered. Everyone quieted down as soon as she spoke. "No," she stated again. She sat up in bed holding her head.

"Nami?" Vivi asked

"Oh!" Luffy remarked holding his arms in the air. "She's all better!"

"Get real!," Usopp said slapping Luffy in the back of his head.

"In my desk drawer…. there's a newspaper…." Nami stuttered.

Vivi quickly went over to the desk drawer and got out the newspaper. She went to hand it to Nami but she shook her head. "Open it," she mumbled.

Vivi did so and she gasped. "That can't be!" she mumbled.

"Hey, what is it?" Luffy asked.

"Is it about Alabasta, Vivi precious?" Sanji wondered.

"300,000 royal soldiers defected to the Resistance…." Vivi stated, waves of panic, fear and angry coming off of her. If the situation with Nami wasn't so dire Addy would have laughed. Looked like more and more that it is a justified revolution. "It was originally a cold war with 600,000 royal soldiers and 400,000 Resistance soldiers. But now that's suddenly changed!"

"The uprising in Alabasta is finally going to get serious now…" Nami uttered. "That paper's from three days ago." Vivi let out a gasp. "I'm sorry. We can't change our speed so I didn't want to worry you by showing you that. Understand Luffy?"

"Things seem very bad!" Luffy stated.

"Whew, that got through to you more than I expected…."

"But you need to see a doctor!" Usopp pointed out.

"Usopp's right, the civil war can wait," Addy said.

"I'm fine… The thermometer must be broken…" Nami whimpered. "Nobody gets a temperature of 40 degrees C. It's probably just sunstroke or something." She stood up out of bed. "We don't need a doctor. I'll get better on my own. For now, let's head to Alabasta as planned." She started walking out of the room and up the stairs. "Thanks for worrying about me."

"No it's not and no you won't," Addy replied catching up to Nami and grabbing her arm, walking with her. "The fever is clouding your judgement heavily. Nami you are dying, and if we head to Alabasta now without at least looking for a doctor…. It's a death sentence."

"You're over exaggerating," Nami huffed out as they walked up the stairs and closed the door behind them. She was leaning heavily against Addy shoulder. They stopped as Nami caught her breath.

"Nami… you know that I'm not. Don't do this. Captain has promised to take her to Alabasta but if you ask for a detour."

"And how many people will die because Vivi did not get there in time to stop it?" Nami asked. "I know you hate her, that you think she is doing this just to remain in power. But what if she is telling the truth?"

"Then there will be blood spilled that didn't need to be. But it doesn't matter. It's one kingdom. It's going to fall someday anyway. It might be its time regardless of what we do. What matters is you."

"We are talking about a million people!" Nami shuddered and Addy tightened her grip on her. A wave of dizziness overtook Addy and she almost collapsed to the floor. What a pair they made.

"All of whom are going to their deaths willingly, whether justified or not. You asked me what I thought if Princess was telling the truth. But what if she is lying? Then you're dying for a dictator! This isn't a case where if we head straight to Alabasta than 1 million people will be saved. Even if Princess is right, then she is being absolutely naïve. What exactly is her plan? Go to the rebel leader and ask them politely to stop rebelling?! Like that would work but that is what it would take to stop the war without bloodshed. No matter what we do, even if we got there tomorrow, people are going to die. One person cannot stop a war!"

"We have to try. For her." Nami got the energy to walk out the door and up the stairs to where Zoro was lifting weights. Nami let go of Addy and walked over and grabbed the Eternal pose which was sitting on the banister by Zoro. Wait Zoro was left in charge of navigation? The guy who gets lost walking in a straight line? Whose idea was that?

" _I think Vivi did,"_ Merry said. " _Everyone else was below deck looking after Nami_."

"Well I guess none of our arguing matters anymore because who knows what direction we are heading off towards," Addy said. "We could be heading back to East Blue for all we know."

" _He's not that bad…. Is he?_ "

"Urgh!" Nami growled. "What were you watching all this time?!"

"Whadya talking about?" Zoro asked. "The ship's been going straight."

" _Okay he is that bad_ ," Merry stated. " _We have been going in an odd angle."_

Addy sighed and walked up to where Nami and Zoro were standing. Sounded like she needed to take the helm to get them back on track.

"Yeah, straight at a right angle! Look at the compass," Nami yelled at him holding it up.

"I don't need to," he replied. "I was watching that big cloud over there." Addy face palmed and felt like smacking Zoro but it would have been pointless.

"Clouds move and change shape! Addy can you…"

"Already on it Nami," Addy said taking the Eternal Pose from her hand and heading towards the helm. Placing the Log on the counter she grabbed the pole with both hands. It wasn't that easy navigating and piloting but she could manage. Just. Her head felt like it was about to explode and sweat was covering her body. She took a shot from her flask but that did nothing. If anything it made her worse.

"Oh, geez my head is killing me…" Nami said. If Addy wasn't trying to get them back on course she would be out there helping her.

"So just leave this to me and go to bed!" Zoro replied. Oh how Addy wished she could but alas he had the worst directional sense Addy had ever seen in a person.

"I'm here because I can't leave this to you!" Nami voice then shifted into something calmer, "The air's changed…"

"The air? It's been nice weather this whole time."

"Never mind! Just get the others! Addy prepare for trouble ahead!"

"Understood!" Addy answered. Whatever was coming wasn't good.

"Hey!" Zoro shouted. "Get out here, you guys! Got work to do!" Addy felt the others come on deck with the exception of Princess.

" _Sanji is already giving Zoro grief,"_ Merry murmured. Her tone soft.

"What do you expect with those two?" Addy asked.

" _Nothing else."_

"Just shut up and move!" Zoro called out to them. "Take the seat and catch the portside wind!"

"Wait what is going on?" Addy wondered.

" _Nami says there is a strong wind coming this way,"_ Merry replied.

"Well if she says so." Even with Nami sick Addy still trusted her weather sense.

"You're hot!" Luffy shouted. "Yeah, you stay inside the ship! Let's go to a doctor!" Addy had an internal cheer at that statement. Finally her and her captain were on the same page again.

"Mind your own business!" Nami screamed at him. "This is my normal temperature! Now quit being stupid and pull the ropes! I told you, I'm fine!" She was really trying to convince all of them but her lies were about as good as Usopp's. "Just hurry and move the ship!" That got them moving, an order from Nami was one to follow. Addy could feel them adjusting the sails as Addy turned Merry in the direction they needed to go watching the Pose with a careful eye. As soon as they were back on course Addy relaxed. Everything was going smoothly. Hopefully they would avoid Wind Nami was talking about.

"I have a favor to ask, everyone!" Vivi called out coming up on deck. Addy immediately tightened up. She knew what she was going to ask and she knew that Luffy would do it. As much as Addy wanted to say screw yourself and throw her overboard, it was up to Luffy. He did promise after all and unlike most he actually kept his word. Addy just wished that for this one time he wouldn't.

"I know it's not my place to ask this as a passenger on your ship!" she started out. "But my homeland is in a terrible state now, so I'd like to hurry ahead! We can't waste even a single minute! So I want this ship to head to Alabasta at its fastest speed!" Silence on deck. Even Merry was quiet. What Vivi was asking was a death sentence for Nami and she knew it. But keeping her power was more important to her. Addy was shaking with rage, the selfishness of nobles would never cease to anger her.

"Of course!" Nami replied. "That's what we promised!" Everyone else was still quiet and Addy knew things have shifted on board. They were going to do what Vivi asked but her days as a treated guest were gone.

"So let's find an island with a doctor on it right away!" Vivi called out.

At that moment Addy's brain, short circuited. Princess said to do what now?

" _Ha, I knew I was right._ " Merry said triumphantly. " _She is a good person_."

"I heard her…. But what?" Addy was still processing it in her brain. Maybe Princess was more than what Addy thought she was. Or maybe she didn't want a death directly on her conscious. Either way Addy was happy with the direction things were taking.

"Let's cure Nami as quickly as possible and then go to Alabasta!" Vivi continued. "That's this ships fastest speed, right?!"

"Yeah!" Luffy answered. "We can't go any faster than that! Right, Addy?!"

"Damn right Captain!" Addy called out.

"That's right!" Vivi added on. "So we need to hurry and cure Nami's illness!"

"Well said, Vivi precious!" Sanji stated. "I've fallen for you all over again!"

"Don't overexert yourself, Nami!" Vivi stated.

"Oi, is Nami okay?" Addy asked.

" _Yeah, Vivi is taking care of her_ ," Merry responded. Addy let out a sigh of relief yet she felt something stir within her. The pull of Ocean on her and Merry. It was chaotic, and violent, without remorse or mercy. Power surging, coursing, capturing everything in its wake.

"What is that?!" Luffy yelled out. Addy knew exactly what it was. She felt the tremors in her body, not from anger or alcohol but the Ocean pulsating in her veins. They have finally run across their first cyclone. "It's huge!"

" _Addy…."_ Merry said. " _You can sail through this right? Right?_ "

"Merry, I was born to do this but I think we are actually going to avoid most if not all of it." She could already feel the tremors fading away as the sailed off.

"W-Wait! That's the direction…" Vivi stammered.

"That's the direction our ship was just headed in!" Sanji commented.

"It would have been a direct hit had we kept going straight!" Usopp cried out.

Thunder and lightning crashed in the sky. This was a battle between Wind and Ocean. One that neither of them would win. The sound of lighting hitting the waves was deafening but compared to what it could be, it was simple play.

"Yikes!" Luffy announced. "We barely made it through!"

"I've never seen such a navigator before!" Vivi proclaimed.

"She is the best of the best!" Addy stated.

"Alright," Luffy called out. "Let's hurry then! Let's go find us a doctor!"

"Yeah!" They all answered back leaving the cyclone behind them. As the rest, dispersed Addy kept her eye on the Pose and a hand at the helm. Their mission was to find a doctor but it wouldn't help them any to go wandering around the Grand Line. Most likely they would find someone if they continued along this path.

Not much longer Addy could feel it start to snow bringing in a chill. Not that Addy minded, she couldn't really feel the cold but she did appreciate the moisture. Her body did as well. She felt that she was a bit better off. This cold snap might have allowed her body to hold on a little longer. The others were keeping an eye out on deck while Nami, Vivi and Sanji were below trying to keep Nami as well as possible.

" _Um, Addy?"_ Merry asked.

"Yes?" Addy answered.

" _Can people stand on Ocean_?"

"No. Not unless they are mine kind. Why do you ask?"

" _Because there is a guy in a jester's outfit standing right in front of us…_ "

"What?" Addy walked out on deck to look at what Merry was talking about, taking the Eternal Pose in hand. Sure, enough there was a guy in a blue and green jester suit with a fur cape on and a bow and arrows strapped to his back. Her, Luffy, Usopp and Zoro were all staring at him. This was definitely going to be a strange day.

* * *

Jag: Yes, so much for updating soon but that's how life goes sometimes. Writing Nami and Addy together is great. Prepare for some real heartbreaking scenes in the future. Merry was indeed telling the truth. We will just have to wait and see what Addy does with that.

RedHairedOctavia: Vivi for me was a character they never did enough with. This is in part trying to flesh out her and Addy more. Addy still has a bone to pick with Vivi as you will see in the next chapter.

PurpleKetloom: Yeah, I wished I would stay consistent. Hopefully that will occur again soon. Glad to see that Addy has her fans.


	86. Lost in Snowfall Part 2

_Author's Note:_

 _This is my favorite chapter so far. I think that it turned out really well. Still on a sporadic update schedule so no clue when the next one is going to be. Hopefully soon. I have also decided to go back back to the beginning of the fic and correct some of the grammar problems that I missed. Nothing plot relevant will be changed, but if you want to go check it out the chapters that I have updated will have a remastered note at the start. This is not something that will affect other updates but rather something that will occur more gradually. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _Also there is some super minor Sanji/Nami._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"This is pretty much the last thing we need," Addy muttered. "Unless jester suit guy is a doctor." Luffy and Usopp rubbed their eyes to make sure that they were seeing things correctly. Sure enough the guy looked like he was standing on water but Addy could feel another ship just beneath the surface. Looks like the guy has a sub. She was standing in between the two of them keeping a careful eye on what was going on.

They were all staring at him silently waiting for him to do something. Addy thought that he said something but she couldn't exactly make it out.

The others looked slightly taken aback until Luffy turned towards both her and Usopp. "Yeah! It is chilly today!"

"Y-yeah! Chilly, chilly! Today's very chilly!" Usopp answered.

"Is it now?" Addy asked. "I haven't really noticed."

"Really?" the jester responded. Everyone except Addy shuddered. What was going on with them? He shuddered as well. It was like a chain reaction.

Addy felt the waves start to shift right before the large ship in front of them surface, the waves causing Merry to be pushed back, tilting her towards the sky. Usopp rolled backwards across the deck while her and Luffy managed to grab a hold of the railing.

"What is that?!" Luffy asked. "A watermelon?!" The ship looked like a silver ball. Metals plates surrounding whatever was inside completely. Merry evened herself out but she was still rocking back and forth in the waves.

"Don't tell me this….is a ship?!" Zoro inquired from the crows nest.

"You're acting surprised," Addy stated as the metal plates started to lower revealing the ship, Luffy letting out a gasp as it did so. "You get all sorts of ships in the Grand Line." At the same time as the plates were lowering, a figurehead shaped like a hippo wearing a crown also rose up. The ship was huge, Addy counted at least four large sails. Merry was tiny compared to that behemoth. It was shaped like a bowl, covered in silver and gears. The last thing to unfurl was the black flag, a skull with a massive jaw wearing a crown.

"Crap!" Usopp yelled out. "A p-pirate ship!"

"W-wow!" Luffy pronounced.

"Just when we're in a hurry…." Zoro muttered. Zoro was right about that. Pirates came in all sorts of shades, though being helpful was usually not one of them. Hopefully luck decided to be on their side for once.

A cackling came from the ship before a voice rang out, "Did our jumbo underwater raid ship, the Tin Tyrant, surprise you?!" As soon as he finished speaking the hippo figure head descended towards the ship and a bunch of guys in green fur coats that went all the way to the floor climbed down the ladder out of its mouth and jumped onto Merry and surrounded each of them on deck. Including Zoro who was still in the crows nest. Each one of them holding a gun. Addy placed her hand on her whip. This was not going to be fun for them. A fat, short guy also jumped down, standing on the banister chewing on a piece of meat stuck to a knife. He had bright violet hair, tin plated armor and purple and orange shorts. He also had what looked like a white furry hippo cape. However, the oddest thing about him was his massive metal jaw. Addy assumed that he was the captain judging from their black flag.

"Hey!" Sanji yelled running onto the deck. "What's going on?!" Immediately five guys surrounded him. He calmly lite a cigarette and let out a deep breath letting the smoke mix into the cold air. "So? What's going on?"

"The ship's being attacked," Luffy answered.

"Well, I had figured as much, from the looks of things."

"Are you really pirates? You're strange? Is it just you five?" He was almost done with the meat on the knife but instead of finishing off like every other person would he took a chunk out of the dagger as well as started eating that as well. Addy and Luffy both flinched. What was this guy?

"I find it hard to believe," he continued crunching away at the knife. "That a pirate group would only have four people." He threw the hilt of the knife in his mouth and continued to munch on that as well.

"What is that guy?!" Luffy grimaced. "He even ate the knife!"

"Just watching hurts!" Usopp remarked holding his hands up in surrender.

"Well no matter," the strange knife eating man stated. "I'll start by asking this. We want to go to Drum Kingdom. Do you happen to have an Eternal Pose or Log Pose?"

Drum Kingdom? Addy felt like she could jump for joy. Drum Kingdom was a member of the Reverie, like Alabasta. However, what made Addy excited was that they were known to have the best doctors in the entirety of the Grand Line. The doctor on her mother's ship was from Drum and nobody could top them. If they were anywhere near Drum Kingdom, then there was a chance that Nami could be saved.

"Nope. Never heard of the place," Sanji answered.

"Okay, you're done, right?!" Luffy snapped. "So leave! We're in a hurry! We don't have time to mess with you!"

The strange hippo man sighed. "Don't rush life like that. But if you have neither, then oh well. For now, I'll take your treasure and this ship."

"What?!" Luffy exclaimed. Honestly the fact that they were trying to rob them didn't surprise Addy at all.

"But first, I'm feeling a bit hungry!" The man unhinged his jaw and hooked his teeth around the edge of Merry taking a chunk out of her side.

" _OW!_ " Merry cried out. " _The man is eating me! Do something!"_ Addy wasn't sure what to do as she stood there flabbergasted and watched the guy swallow the chuck he bit off Merry.

"What is this guy?!" Usopp yelled out.

"Don't eat our ship!" Luffy shouted at him getting ready to jump down and attack.

"Hold it right there!" one of the minions stated drawing his gun closer to Luffy. Another one drew his gun closer as well. "Wapol is currently eating!"

"Shut up!" Luffy responded punching them both in the head, knocking them out with ease.

"Damn that bastard!" another minion shouted. "Fire!"

Addy who was still standing next to Luffy quickly ducked, avoiding the bullets and unfurled her whip. Wrapping it around the legs of the guy closest to her, she sent him crashing to the ground.

"Should've done that from the very start," Zoro said tossing away the blanket he was using to keep warm.

"Oh? We can have at em?" Sanji asked.

"No, wait!" Usopp shouted. Someone he managed to find his way onto the mast and was using it as a shield. "We can discuss this!"

There was shouting and chaos as the Straw Hats started fighting. Addy lashed her whip at two guys causing deep gashes before standing up and smashing the hilt into another. She took a brief moment to see how the others were doing.

Sanji leapt up out of the bullets path and landed next to one of them. "Don't do anything you can't handle!" Sanji stated bring his foot behind the guy's head and sending him crashing to the floor. "Reception!" He was then taking out guys as swiftly as he could. Usopp was trying to avoid the fight entirely while Zoro cleared out the crows nest and ran down the mast taking out three guys at once with one quick sword strike.

Addy heard the click of a gun and she swiftly jumped in the air flipping over the guy and wrapped her whip around him while she was in midair pulling him down when she landed. Even in the condition she was in, these guys were no problem. If she was in any decent condition these guys would not even be classified as a nuisance.

"Tch," Zoro stated. "All bark and no bite."

"Wapol!" One of the guys cried out. "These guys…!"

Wapol was still eating away at Merry, though Luffy was barreling towards him, knocking every guy out in his way. Addy made sure that no guys tried to attack him from behind, her whip dancing in the air. She felt the rush of adrenaline surging through her veins, that and the snow was the only reason she was able to fight at all. But she could feel her body becoming weaker. Breaths harder to take in. She hoped that these guys would flee soon because she wasn't going to be able to keep up much longer.

"Are you still eating it?!" Luffy screamed, shoving guys out of the way.

"Say, this ship doesn't taste half bad…" Wapol said.

Luffy managed to make it to Wapol "Hey you!"

"Fool!" one of the minions shouted. "You're no match for Wapol!'

"Time to get eaten by the power of the Baku-Baku Fruit!" another called out.

Luffy ran straight towards Wapol. Wapol turned away from Merry and opened up his jaw, ready to clamp down on Luffy. Even with Usopp's warning there was no stopping it as Wapol closed his mouth around Luffy. Unfortunately, for Wapol Luffy's arms were stretched out all away across the deck and beyond.

"W-what is this?!" Princess asked. Addy huffed. Looks like she finally decided to show up. Not that they really needed her. Addy wasn't even sure she could fight. Luckily pretty much everyone had been defeated.

"Oh, hey Vivi precious," Sanji said. "Has something happened to Nami dear?"

"What a hard to chew person!" Wapol complained.

"Why, you!" Luffy shouted bringing his arms back quickly. A surprised looked came over Wapol right before he was sent flying. "Go flying!" Luffy shot him so far away he was nothing more than a sparkle in the sky. They all smirked, except for Vivi who just looked surprised. So much for him.

Using the same ladder that descended from the hippo figure head that they used to get on board Merry, the minions used it to take off back onto their own ship. Probably to go try and save their captain.

"This isn't over!" Jester man shouted at the Straw Hats. "We will make you pay for this!"

"Remember us!" another odd-looking guy shouted at them but Addy wasn't paying them any attention, instead gathering on deck with everyone else.

"We'll get you for this!"

"Please, remember us! Please!" That ship whatever it was called swiftly sailed away to go rescue their moronic captain. Addy sighed. They were probably never going to see them again.

"W-what was that just now?" Usopp asked. "They seemed to call him Wapol, but…"

"Doesn't matter," Sanji replied. "Don't worry about it. He's just a moron. That's the only possible explanation."

"Have I seen him somewhere before?" Vivi wondered.

"Well despite the fact that he is a blithering moron he did say something interesting," Addy said. The others turned towards her. "Apparently, he is looking for Drum Kingdom which is great news for us."

"Why is that Addy sweet?" Sanji asked.

"Drum Kingdom is known for their doctors. If we are in the general area, then there might be hope for Nami. However, there is also a chance that we are nowhere near as well. The Grand Line is a large place after all."

"But there is a chance right?" Luffy asked. Addy nodded. She hoped with everything that she had that they were close. It was the only chance Nami had.

….

" _The sun is beginning to set,_ " Merry stated.

"It's that late already?" Addy asked. She was down by Nami's beside with Luffy, Sanji, Princess and the bird. She was getting worse and worse every hour. Zoro was out on deck keeping watch with Usopp. Addy still had the Eternal Pose and glanced at it every once in a while to make sure they were keeping on the course. Ocean damn she wished she knew more about the geography of Paradise.

"Are you sure she's not just hungry?" Luffy asked softly. The three of them just looked at him. "If so, she should eat enough meat for 100 people! Eating meat makes sickness go away!"

"Look, you," Sanji huffed exasperated.

Luffy started to stretch out his ears. "Come on! Cheer up! Look! Look!" He tied his ears around his hat and proceeded to tie his chin and nose into knots as well, trying to get any sort of reaction out of Nami. Everything snapped back into place and a grave look overcame him. "She isn't laughing…. Not one bit…." He went back to standing over her. Her entire body was covered in sweat, her hair glistening from it. She was panting heavily, her body struggling with each breath.

"Won't her fever go down if we dump water on her?" Luffy asked.

Addy stepped out of the way as Sanji and Vivi kicked and punched him across the room, sending him straight in the wall. "You idiot!" they both cried out.

"This isn't good. The suns about to set for today, Addy sweet, Vivi precious," Sanji stated.

"Yes, you're right," Vivi answerd. "Let's drop anchor somewhere. We can't navigate at night without Nami's instructions."

"Yeah. I'll go tell Marimo to drop the anchor." Sanji left for upstairs Addy and Vivi alone in the room with a knocked out Luffy. Neither spoke a word. There was nothing to be said. They just stood there watching Nami even as the others came down, Sanji bringing food. Dinner was less of a ruckus than usual. All wanting to be quiet for Nami's sake. After taking the plates away Sanji muttered something about keeping watch while the others settled in various spots in the room, not wanting to be far away from Nami. Addy and Vivi kept by her bedside and one by one they fell asleep with the exception of Addy. Sleep would not come to her tonight.

Around two o'clock she felt Nami start to shift. She watched as Nami struggled to open her eyes and sit up, Addy helping her to do so. Usopp startled both of them when he shouted something about autographs but he was still completely asleep.

"I can see the others are out of it," she muttered. It was barely more than a whisper.

"Yeah, though poor Sanji is out on watch," Addy replied keeping her voice low. Nami gazed at her crewmates and a sad look overcame her face.

"Addy, what happens if I don't make it?"

Addy's entire body stiffened. She didn't even want to think of that possibility. "Don't say such things. We will find you a doctor."

Nami gave her a small smile. "I think you know better than any of us the chances of that actually happening. Tell me the truth. The odd aren't good, are they?"

Addy couldn't even bring herself to say the words, she just shook her head. Nami closed her eyes for a moment before opening them again. Tears were starting to form.

"Promise me you'll take care of them," Nami asked.

"Nami…" it came out as some sort of strangled cry. "I can't…. I'm…" Dying, Addy wanted to say but the words would not form.

Now it is Nami's turn to shake her head, "You can. I know it will be hard but you can." Before Addy realized what was happening Nami unclipped the Log Pose from around her wrist and placed it around Addy's.

"Nami…. I'm no navigator. Not compared to you…"

"You're the best we have after me and besides you are the best helmsman we are ever going to meet. If it is going to be anyone, it's going to be you. Just keep them as safe as you can for me." Addy was speechless as Nami wrapped her arms around her before laying herself back down to sleep. She fell asleep almost instantly.

Addy was trembling, she rushed out of the room, just needing to be away. The Log Pose on her wrist feeling like a dead weight dragging her down. As she got to the deck, she hoped that the cold night air would clear her head but it did no such thing. She felt as if her world was spinning. Climbing up to the crow's nest she spotted Sanji curled up in a blanket.

"Ah, Addy sweet is there anything I can do-"

"Just go down and be with her," Addy panted putting the hand with the Log Pose behind her back. No point in letting him know just yet.

"Addy sweet… it's just that-"

"I know it's hard. I hate feeling useless too but I also know how you feel about her." Sanji looked at her wide eyed and gaped at her like a fish. Addy pointed down the ladder, "Don't worry I won't tell anyone. Just….go be with her." Sanji nodded and got up. He squeezed Addy's shoulder on his way down. As soon as she heard the door close to the lower area, she collapsed against the wall of the crow's nest, bringing her head into her knees. Grabbing her flask, she intended to drain it to the last drop. But she couldn't bring herself to do so, hesitating as she brought it to her lips. Instead she threw the flask against the mast letting the liquid spill across the floorboards.

"She doesn't know what she is asking," Addy muttered. "I can't do it." Nami was asking more than to watch over the Straw Hats. As she watched the liquid drip down onto the deck below she regretted throwing it. It was her crutch, her demon. The burden she carried on her back but it kept the memories away. It dulled the hole in her soul. Nami was asking more than for her to stop drinking. She was asking her to allow all the pain to come flooding back in.

"You wasted some perfectly good booze there," Zoro stated.

Addy bolted upright standing wobbly. He was standing right in front of her, leaning against the mast.

"Zoro," she whispered taking a step closer to him. "How?"

"I overheard your conversation with Nami. Then when Curly Brows came down-"

"You knew." She walked up to him and pressed her face into his shoulder. She felt him stiffen and then relax wrapping his arms around her as if he wasn't fully sure what he was doing. Right now she just needed to feel something alive, without the sense of death lingering around.

"We will find a doctor," Zoro said. "Get Vivi to her kingdom and everything will go back to the way it should be."

"Zoro," Addy muttered pulling her head back. The full moon allowing her to see him as clearly as if it was nighttime. She was close enough that she could feel his hot breath against her skin, his lips millimeters away from her own. She wondered what they would taste like, soft or rough against her lips. She brought her hand up to the back of his head ready to close the gap. But she stopped herself. What they were, what they had, was nothing more than convenience. A way to release tension and relax. They weren't dating, and to start would be cruel to Zoro, even if there were mutual feelings. Despite that Addy wanted nothing more to do than to kiss him and never stop. However, she would have to settled for what they always did. She moved her hand to his chest and pushed him against the mast, her other hand reaching for the zipper on his pants. He groaned in anticipation and despite the chill blushed heavily. This would have to do.

…

It was Usopp repairing Merry in the morning that woke her up. Zoro was still snoozing away next to her. They kept each other warm through the night, though Addy wished it would start snowing again.

"You're up early Usopp!" she called down.

"I can't just sit around doing nothing!" he replied. Looks like they were all feeling the same way. "We gotta get out of this jam as quick as possible!"

"Yeah, we really do." Soon enough it was morning, the rising sun waking Zoro. Sanji came up and headed to the galley. Once Zoro managed to rouse himself, he went down lift the anchor and to check on Luffy and Nami. Addy couldn't bring herself to follow him electing instead to remain in the crows nest, trying to see if she could spot anything in the distance. Once Sanji was done with the food, it being more of a serve yourself type of deal he came up and joined her.

She leaned against him placing her head on his shoulder grateful for the company. He managed to dig up a winter jacket so now he was no longer completely freezing.

"Say, doesn't this area seem kind of calm and cold?" he asked.

"Yeah, sudden, strange calms," Usopp added in. "I guess that's another thing that happens in the erratic Grand Line."

"It means we are approaching an island," Addy answered. "And judging from the weather I would guess a winter one."

"Addy is right," Vivi stated. She was also wearing warmer clothes. "We should carefully look over the horizon."

"The Grand Line has all these different islands one after the other, and that's why the seas between them have such unstable weather," Usopp said.

"That's right. Which is why stable weather means an island is nearby."

"Yeah… I see it!" Sanji remarked. Addy whirled around in the direction Sanji was facing. Sure enough she could just make out an island in the distance. "We found an island!"

" _It has this really weird mountain range,"_ Merry said, " _It almost looks like drums_."

"No way," Addy hissed. Luck was on their side. They managed to find Drum Kingdom. Nami was going to be okay.

Luffy ran up and shouted with joy as he saw the approaching island. Addy made her way to the helm, ready to pull Merry onto shore. She grabbed the helm and everything fell into place.

"White! It's so white!" Luffy called out. "It must be snow! A snow island, huh?!"

"Hey Luffy," Sanji said. "Just so you know, we're not here to have an adventure! We're dropping by to find a doctor! We're leaving once we get Nami dear looked at! Hey, hey Luffy!"

" _Luffy is paying no attention to him,_ " Mery stated.

"Snow is so nice and white!" Luffy shouted.

"Somehow that doesn't surprise me," Addy said.

"H-h-hold on!" Usopp stuttered. "Is this a good idea?! If there's snow, couldn't there be snow monsters too?! Besides, we're not even sure if people live there or not! Oh, no! My chronic Can't-Go-To-The Island disease!"

"Yes, they do!" Addy yelled. She left the door open to communicate with others. "That right in front of us is Drum Kingdom! We found it!" Sanji let out a whoop while Luffy was still talking about the snow. Addy could sense the snow as they got closer, her body strengthening as a result. She enjoyed snow a lot. Considering her mother was the Ice Queen she sort of had to.

Addy started sailing them up a river that snaked its way to the coast. Everyone except Nami was currently on deck. Luffy was still talking about the snow.

" _Those mountains are incredible,"_ Merry said filled with wonder.

"They are what the island is named for," Addy stated.

"It's negative 10 degrees C right now!" Vivi said. Addy thought it was actually slightly colder. "That's when bears get ready to hibernate!"

"So cold!" Luffy uttered.

"Took you long enough!" Usopp and Sanji shouted at him. Addy felt a super jolt of power course through her. Everything snapped back into place, like it was before she started drinking. She ran out onto the deck and stood beside Vivi and Zoro who were next to the figure head. Sure enough right in front of them was a waterfall made out of melted snow. It was small but it was still strong enough to send Addy's senses into overdrive despite her body shutting down. It would last her a little while. She was the only one out there besides Luffy who wasn't wearing winter clothing but she didn't need to. The coldness of snow didn't affect her so she was still in her tunic and leggings combo without shoes.

"So, who's going doctor-hunting?" Zoro asked. "No, I guess people hunting comes first."

"I'm going!" Luffy shouted raising his hand up in the air.

"Me too!" Sanji said.

"Count me in!" Addy added in.

"Okay! Have fun!" Usopp stated.

"That's far enough, pirates!" A guy shouted at them. Addy looked around and saw that they were completely surrounded by people with various winter coats holding guns. Addy face palmed. She forgot that they would probably be unwelcomed due to the fact that they were technically pirates. No matter. Luffy was there captain. He would befriend them in two minutes or something. Just in case however Addy had her hand on her whip. Even if they were just villagers, if they hurt one of her nakama they were in for a beating. She moved quickly to the lower deck to stand beside Sanji to cover that side.

"Hey." Luffy stated. "I found people."

"But… they don't seem too friendly," Usopp said.

"Really? What gave you that clue?" Addy huffed. "Was it the guns? Because they sort of tipped me off."

One of the men who seemed to be in charge stepped forward. With slicked black hair and a goatee, the man was large and imposing. He was wearing a long, white fur-lined green tunic and armor plates on his arms. He had a hat of the same color as his tunic. He also had some sort of weapon strapped to his back.

"Attention pirates!" he shouted. "Leave this place at once! This instant!"

"We came to find a doctor!" Luffy shouted back.

"We have a sick person onboard!" Vivi added on.

"We won't fall for that trick, you filthy pirates!" One of the men on shore shouted.

Another started up on the other side. "This is our island! We won't let any pirates land here!"

"Raise anchor and leave now!" Another one jumped in. "Or else we'll blow your whole ship up!"

"They really hate our guts," Sanji muttered. "And we've just met too…"

"We are pirates, this shouldn't be a surprise," Addy pointed out. "I'm surprised we don't get this reaction more."

"Don't talk back!" one of them shouted at her. Aiming for her feet they shot but she shifted out of the way. She could hear Merry grimace in pain. That's it. She just ran out of patience.

"They're shooting!" Usopp yelled.

"You didn't just do that!" Sanji growled. He was also beyond pissed. "Bastard!" He started running towards the gun and Vivi made a move to stop him. However, Addy could see the guy was about to panic and swiftly moved in front of Vivi. She might have hated her guts but it was still technically her job to protect her. Just as Vivi grabbed onto Sanji, Addy pushed them both out of the way. Then all she felt was a white-hot flash of pain and her knees hitting the deck as Luffy screamed out her name.

* * *

Hikari302: Well so far nothing good has really happened to her. You'll have to wait and see if that trend continues.

blackcat711: Oh they will find out soon. And when they do this chapter will be happy in comparison.

Jag: Busyness is overrated. I think it is a combination of both. Addy is really good at hiding she is sick but then most of the crew has also never been sick before so wouldn't exactly know what to look for. Nami might but she would be busy with Vivi who Addy has been actively avoiding. Also Addy's ability to sense death will be explained at some point. As for the doctor, I have special plans for her. Let's just say she'll make Addy's life pretty difficult.

fragile00: Happy that you enjoy Addy. I love writing her.


	87. Lost in Snowfall Part 3

_Author's Note:_

 _This took way, way to long to be updated, but a long string of events occurred, including computer problems and somewhat lost motivation, stopped it from happening. But it is finally here and hopefully worth the wait. The next update should not take as long and hopefully we'll resume a schedule at some point in the near future. Review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

It was agony, brutal agony. Addy let out a string of curse words as she collapsed on her knees, clutching her arm. She grit her teeth and glared at the person who shot her. The injury was a graze, blood trickling through her fingers though it felt like her entire arm was on fire, she was shaking with silent screams. Thank Ocean she was near a waterfall otherwise she would probably have passed out. It was already starting to curb her pain and the blood flow was slowing down.

The others looked like they were about to start a blood bath, with the exception of Vivi who was still sitting on the deck looking at her amazed. Luffy and Zoro were especially ready for a brawl, anger flowing off of them in waves. These villagers didn't have a chance. Hopefully they didn't accidentally kill a doctor. That would be bad. Though they would just go to a different village and find a doctor there. After all the chances that there was only one were absolutely insane.

"Why, you!" Luffy screamed. Yep, the guy was dead. There was no coming back from this.

"Aim!" someone shouted. Everyone on shore aimed their guns at Luffy. If Addy wasn't in searing pain she would have burst out laughing. She did manage a sly grin. Those stupid people had no idea what they were getting themselves into. Addy could hear the click of the guns and Zoro's swords clink together. Wincing, she managed to stand upright, lowering her hand from her injury onto her whip.

"Addy sweet!" Sanji called to her. "You should not be standing!"

"I'm fine!" she growled out. "If you think I'm not going to get into the middle of this, you're dead wrong." The bleeding had stopped and the pain was localized to the wound instead of all across her arm. Thank Ocean for the waterfall.

Luffy started to charge, aiming for the guy that shot Addy when Princess jumped him, grabbing him by the waist.

"No! Stop!" she yelled at him. "Fighting won't help anything! Addy's fine! It only grazed her arm!"

"Speak for yourself," Addy snapped. In any other circumstances, she would be passed out on deck. "Right now, I think fighting will help us a lot."

"Think of Nami!" Viv replied. "Is one small injury worth risking her life?!" Addy flinched. Princess did have a point there. Even from here Addy could sense that Nami did not have much time. If they wasted even a moment.

Vivi turned towards the villagers on shore, getting onto her knees, and lowering her head. Addy had to stifle a gasp. She was bowing. "In that case, we won't land here! But could we ask for a doctor? Our friend is suffering from a grave illness. Please help! I beg you!"

"Vivi!" Luffy stated sounding as surprised as Addy was.

"You're not fit to be captain, Luffy," Vivi said to him. Addy swiftly turned towards her and glared. Any good will she gained from this stunt was gone. If it wasn't for the promise Addy would have killed her on the spot. "Not everything can be fixed by acting recklessly!" Addy actually agreed with her except for the tiny tiny fact that they were just shot at. Self-defense seems like a naturally reaction, particularly since they had no idea what kind of people they were. Princess could say all the pretty words she wanted, lowering her guard and all it would take is a few bullets to end them. Very few people are merciful after all. "If you start a fight here, what will happen to Nami?" That was the one thing Princess was right about. They couldn't afford a fight.

Luffy looked at her before turning to the crowd. "Yeah, he said. "I'm sorry! I was wrong!" Addy really hoped these weren't the kind of people who shot first and asked questions later. "Please call a doctor!" He got on his knees and lowered his head onto the deck. Addy cocked her head and wondered if this was going to be the only time she ever saw the future Pirate King bow before someone. "Please help our nakama!" The straw hat fell onto the deck and the crowd paused. There was no movement on either side.

"I will show you to the village!" the man in the green tunic stated. "Follow me." He turned around and started walking away from them. The others holstered their weapons and started to follow him.

See?" Vivi said. "They understood!"

"Yeah!" Luffy replied. "You're amazing!" That caused Addy to flinch as she walked up to the two of them. Luffy bounced up on his own while Addy held her hand out to Vivi. Princess looked up at her and smiled taking her hand. Addy pulled her into an embrace seemingly thanking her, though her motives were far less pure.

"If you ever speak to Captain like that again I will kill you and send your head to Crocodile," Addy hissed softly in her ear. Vivi stiffened and tried to push out of her grasp but Addy held her tightly. "Are we clear?"

"Yes," she answered. Addy could hear the tremble in her voice. She let out a smile and let her go.

"Right, well I suggest we start to follow them before they get too far ahead," Addy announced to the others.

"Addy, your arm," Usopp started to say.

Addy shook her head. "Princess was right. It is only a graze. It has already stopped bleeding and it no longer feels like it is on fire." Only a painful throb. That was probably going to last awhile. Longer since Addy wasn't drinking. As soon as Addy got off this island then death was going to claim her. The only thing keeping her alive was the jolt from the waterfall and the massive abundance of snow amplifying the jolt. Once that was gone than it would only be mere moments before death arrived.

"Sanji, you get Nami," Addy said. Sanji nodded and raced down below decks to get her. Addy didn't need to tell him to be careful. She was one of the most precious things after all. "Zoro you stay here and guard Merry. The rest of us will head to the village.

"What?!" Zoro asked confused. "Why am I staying here?!"

"Because I trust these people about as much as I trust Marines. Captain is our will and there is no way I'm going to be able to tear Sanji away from Nami. Which means that you're the only one left to guard Merry." Zoro grumbled but nodded, understanding her logic. "The bird will stay here too. I can't imaging snow would be any good for it." The bird seemingly squawked in agreement.

"W-w-wait….." Usopp stuttered. "I can stay. After all there is no one better at defending Merry than-"

"Fine then. If you want to fight the potential snow monsters be my guest."

"…. On second thought, I'll come with you."

"I thought you would say that." Sanji came up on deck, carrying Nami piggyback. He wrapped her in the warmest jacket she had. "Let's get going then."

The Straw Hats started making their way onto the cliff. Luffy was helping them get across having stretched over and grabbing each of them. For once he was gently placing them on the other side, probably because of Nami's condition.

Addy was the last one to get off and as Luffy's hand stretched out towards her Merry said, " _Promise me that when you get back she will be well again_."

"I promise Merry," Addy whispered as Luffy grabbed ahold of her. "I will make sure of it."

" _And promise me that you'll come back too. Maybe a doctor will be able to help your condition."_

"I'm not sure there's anything anybody can do Merry." She grabbed Luffy's hand and landed on the other side softly in the snow. Unlike the others she stood on the snow not even making an indentation. Her feet were relishing the feeling, the cold not bothering her in the slightest.

Snow was falling lightly around them and Addy got more than a few strange glances. Probably for her attire which was only a halter top and some leggings. Not that she really cared. After they got off this island it wouldn't really matter anymore. She would be with Riley again.

Green tunic guy was leading the pack, with Vivi behind him and Usopp and Luffy right behind her. Addy was only slightly behind Luffy with Sanji behind her, taking it slow for Nami'' s sake.

"I must warn you, the only doctor we have here is a witch," Green tunic guy said. Add hoped he meant in the village and not the entire island. Because that would probably be bad. This was Drum Kingdom after all. They were kinda known for their doctors.

"Witch?" Usopp asked.

"You gotta be kidding me," Sanji grumbled. "Nothing here makes sense."

"That's kinda of the Grand Line for you," Addy replied. "Though even this seems rather strange. Drum Kingdom does have a reputation for doctors."

"This land still does not have a name," Green tunic guy said.

"I'm sorry what?" Addy asked.

"A nameless land?" Vivi wondered. "Does that really happen?" The Green tunic guy was silent, almost as if he didn't hear them. Addy was going to ask what he was on about when she heard Usopp scream.

"A bear!" he shouted, jaw dropping. "Everyone! Pretend to be dead!" He collapsed into the snow at that point while everyone else kept walking. There was a white bear in front of them walking on two legs and carrying a pickaxe.

"A hiking bear," Green tunic stated. "They pose no danger. Don't forget to bow. It's proper hiking manners."

Addy rolled her eyes. There was no way she was going to bow to a bear. While everyone else did she just stared at the bear directly in its eyes. It got the message and moved past them slightly faster than before. There was only a few beings she would bow before and none of them were mortal.

The rest of the walk was silent. No one seemed keen to answer any questions. Eventually Addy could make out red brick buildings, with what looked like brown cones for roofs, despite the snow fall. As they got closer a town started to form with more people milling around and all sorts of crazy looking animals. Farther in the distance was the drum mountains that gave the island its name. From here it looked like they touched the sky.

"This is our village, Big Horn," Green tunic said. He really wasn't the greatest tour guide.

"There are weird animals everywhere," Luffy stated holding his hand above his eyes to shield them from the snow.

"That's snow country for ya!" Usopp responded.

"Nami dear," Sanji said his voice filled with excitement. "We made it to a village with people! It's a village!"

"Okay, thanks for the help everyone," Green tunic said turning towards his crowd of men. "Those who aren't guards can return to work." Addy ignored them. Right now they needed a doctor. The Log Pose on her wrist weighed her down heavily. Vivi seemed enthralled by what was going on, almost as if she forgot their entire purpose for coming.

"They weren't this land's security forces?" Vivi asked. Addy huffed. Why should they care? They weren't here to fix this country's problems. They were already trying to fix one, and they shouldn't even have been doing that.

"They're ordinary citizens," Green tunic answered. "Come to my home for now." Addy, Sanji and Vivi followed him towards one of the small red brick buildings while Usopp and Luffy lagged behind messing with some large woman who called out, "Dalton. I heard there were pirates! Are you okay?"

"Yes, everything is okay," Green tunic answered. So he name was Dalton. Good to know. "There's nothing to worry about."

Another person, this time an older gentleman also called out to Dalton. "Oh Dalton! I look forward to the election in two days!" Wait when was Drum Kingdom a democracy? Addy swore it had a King or some nonsense. "Everyone says they're going to vote for you!"

"Y-you can't be serious!" Dalton stuttered holding his hands up in front of them and waving in surprise. "I'm nothing but a sinful man."

"No offense. I'm sure you got some major political problems or something going on," Addy butted in. "But honestly I don't care and our nakama is still dying. So if you could point us in the direction of this witch or whatever that would be immensely helpful."

"Right sorry," Dalton said. "Please come in." They all walked into one of the small houses. It had an interesting atmosphere. On the wall in between some decorative plates was a pair of swords crossed over each other and above it what looked like a white tiger skin. There were a few other paintings on the wall but none of them stood out. On the floor was a bed and a fireplace close by.

"Use that bed there," Dalton pointed towards. "I'll warm the place up." Sanji gently placed Nami in the bed while Vivi covered her up.

"I haven't told you my name yet."

"Your name is Dalton," Addy said. "I'm Addy, the guy in the Straw Hat is Captain."

"I'm Luffy," Luffy waved at him.

"The blond is Sanji, dark skin is Usopp, our sick nakama is Nami and the other person's name doesn't matter."

"Hey!" Vivi hissed.

Addy rolled her eyes. "Whatever, I'm sure whatever you do here is important or something."

"I'm captain of the security squad of this island," Dalton answered looking at her absolutely bewildered.

"Good for you. Don't really care. Where is the witch?"

"Please forgive our heavy handed welcome," Dalton said before turning to Vivi. "May I ask you a question?" Vivi looked up at him surprised. "I somehow feel like I've seen you before."

Vivi looked taken aback. "I-it's probably just your imagination!" Well that was smooth.

"You can grill her later," Addy snapped. "Right now where is the witch?"

"You don't have much patience," Dalton mumbled.

"I have more when one of my close friends isn't dying."

"Please tell us about the witch," Vivi added in. "Nami's temperature was 42 degree C when I checked it just now!" Dalton gasped as if he was only realizing how desperate their situation really was.

"42 degrees C?!" he exclaimed.

"Her fever's gone up for three days in a row."

"She'll die if it goes up anymore!"

"Yes. But we don't even know the cause of her illness or how to treat it."

"We need a doctor!" Sanji remarked sounding as aggravated as Addy did. "Anyone will do! Where is this witch of yours?!"

Dalton moved to stand over her, a worried expression came over his face. "The witch huh? Do you see those mountains outside the window?"

"Yeah?" Sanji stated. "Those insanely tall-" Addy and him both turned towards the window only to see a snowman blocking their view. It only dawned on Addy that Luffy and Usopp had not come into the house with them. She could see Sanji get progressively angrier as his shoulders raised up. "Don't make me kick your asses!" Before Addy could even blink Sanji had rushed outside and started kicking the snow around. She heard the yelps over the other two and snow flying all around. Neck thing she knew Sanji was dragging the two of them inside the house by their collars.

"Oi Sanji why ruin the fun?" Luffy complained.

"We have more important things at stake," he yelled at them. Dalton walked towards them and handed them a mug of something hot. Sanji huffed and went back towards the window. Addy moved to stand beside him. Right now he was going through more pain than any of the other Straw Hats realized. She gripped his shoulder and gave it a tight squeeze.

"Those mountains are known as the Drum Rockies," Dalton said his voice growing sad. "Do you see the castle at the top of the tallest one in the middle?"

"Castle?" Usopp asked.

"That castle no longer has its king," Dalton said. That perked Addy up. When did Drum Kingdom get rid of its king? Could not have been that long ago since otherwise she would have heard about it. Vivi also moved closer to the window in order to see what Dalton was talking about.

"Yeah, there it is," Sanji stated. Addy spotted it immediately as well. Even from this far away it stood out clearly.

"What's so important about the castle?" Vivi asked.

"The only doctor in the land, Dr. Kureha, lives there. People call her a witch."

"What?!" Sanji exclaimed. "Of all places, why does it have to be so far away?!" Sanji was right. It wasn't going to be easy to get Nami up there. But they would have to find a way. "Then call her right away! We have a critical patient!"

"Even if we wanted to, there's no way to contact her." Well that seemed like a very stupid system.

Sanji whirled his head to face Dalton. "Huh?! And she calls herself a doctor?! What the hell is she like?!"

"As a doctor, she's very skilled." Well that's good news. "But she's an eccentric old hag. She's nearly 140 years old now." Wait what? Addy stared at him confused. How was that possible? If it was one of her kind than she would not be ageing but from the sound of this woman it seemed like she was old. There were no other beings that were immortal per say, at least without the help of a Devil Fruit. That could be the case here.

"140?! I think she might need help!" Sanji exclaimed.

"And let's see… she likes pickled plums."

"What in Ocean does that have to do with anything?!" Addy growled.

"What happens when people here get sick or injured?" Vivi asked. Well assumedly they die since the doc was almost impossible to get to. Almost impossible since her and Luffy were going to find a way.

"She comes down from the mountain when she feels like," Dalton stated. That's a brilliant system. How many people have died since they couldn't get treatment? "She looks for patients, treats them, then, as payment she takes whatever she wants from their houses before leaving."

"Sounds like an unfriendly old hag!" Usopp muttered. He got that right.

"Hey!," Luffy said. "She almost sounds like a pirate!" Addy turned towards her Captain. He wasn't actually wrong but that only lead to more questions than answers.

"But how does such an old woman go down that mountain?" Vivi asked. That was a good question. Maybe they could use the same route.

"It's an odd rumor," Dalton murmured. "But several people have claimed to have seen her riding a sleigh through the sky on moonlit nights. And that's the reason she's called a witch. Some also saw her with a strange creature they'd never seen before."

Usopp grimaced and fell backwards, "I knew it!" he whimpered. "It's a Snow Man! It's a snowy mountain, after all!" He started freaking out and rolling all around the floor. "I knew there'd be one! A witch and a Snow Man?! Oh, please never let us run into them!"

"She is the only doctor, but she's a hag I prefer to stay away from. All we can do is wait for the next time she comes down the mountain."

"You can't be serious," Vivi asked.

"Yeah, that's not happening," Addy stated. "Right Captain?"

Luffy was already a step ahead of her, having moved to Nami's bedside and started repeatedly slapping her lightly in the face trying to get her to wake up. "Hey! Nami! Nami! Can you hear me?"

"What are you doing?!" Vivi, Usopp and Sanji yelled at him.

"Oh! She's awake! Hey," Luffy said speaking to her. Addy moved to his side and looked down at Nami. They really had no time left. "The only way to see a doctor is to climb a mountain. We're gonna climb it!" With Addy's help Luffy started to pick up Nami.

"Don't be crazy!" Sanji shouted. "What are you doing with Nami?!"

"It's okay!" Luffy replied. "I'll carry her on my back!"

"That'll only make things worse!" Vivi exclaimed.

"Right," Addy snarked. "I suppose the better idea is to wait around and hope that the doc shows up before she dies." Vivi and Sanji both took a step back probably surprised by the harshness of her tone. Addy had no sympathy. She was not losing another nakama. If there was a fighting chance she would take it.

"What's the problem?" Luffy asked them. "We need to hurry, don't we?"

"That's true," Vivi replied. "But you can't! Look how steep and tall it is!" She pointed at the mountain outside.

"Addy and I can make it."

"Maybe you can make it," Sanji stated. "But it'd be too hard on Nami dear! And Addy has been shot!"

"Which is not really bothering me," Addy snapped. It wasn't the absolute truth. The wound itself ached and she did not have the full use of her arm but that wasn't going to stop her. The weight of the Log Pose hurt more. "Besides I'm the only one that can actually see through snowfall. Without me anyone who does not know the area would be wandering out there for days. Me being out there is like me in Ocean. I am literally built for these conditions."

"Yeah, besides if we fall, we'll land in snow," Luffy stated. Sanji gave Addy the look of really but Addy shrugged. They had no other choice.

"Even a healthy person would die instantly after a fall from there!" Not true, both Addy and Luffy would survive. Anybody else, probably not.

"Seriously," Usopp added in. "She's 6 degrees C over normal temperature! Do you even get it?!"

"Which makes it even more important that we start now," Addy pointed out.

"I need to get over this fast…" Nami muttered. Her voice was so soft that Addy barely heard it. "I need to hurry…. for Vivi…." Addy rolled her eyes but whatever got the others to agree she would take at this point. Slowly she moved her hand out of bed and held it up just above the covers. "I'm counting on you, Captain!"

Luffy grinned and slapped the hand. "That's more like it! Just leave it to me!"

"Just make sure to follow Addy's lead."

"I can't believe it," Usopp muttered. "Like captain, like navigator!"

"Do you know what condition you're in, Nami dear?!" Sanji asked desperation eking into his voice.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Vivi asked. "It'll take hours to get there!"

"Old guy!" Luffy shouted. "Give me meat!"

Dalton looked absolutely bewildered about what was going on. "Meat?" he asked.

"Just give it to him," Addy said. "It's better to not ask questions." As Dalton gave him meat Addy secured Nami to Luffy's back. She was safest with him and there was no way Addy had the strength.

As they made their way outside the snow was falling down even faster. Sanji turned towards her and Luffy. "Alright!" Sanji announced. "I'm coming too!" Addy smirked, she didn't expect anything less.

"Listen, Luffy," Usopp said pointing at Nami. "Don't fall even once, or you can expect Nami to die!"

"Eh?!" Luffy reacted. "Even once?!"

"Wait!" Vivi stated checking over the bindings around Luffy's waist. "I need to tie this right!" She stood up after tightening. "Okay, I'm going to wait here. I'd only get in the way."

"Something else we agree on," Addy said.

Vivi just looked at her. "I'm not sure you should be going either. You are injured."

"And whose fault is that? If I didn't have to push some moron out of the way I'm pretty sure I would be fine. Besides if you know anyone else would can see through a blizzard let me know." Vivi backed off after that.

"I'll stay here too," Usopp said defusing the situation.

"Alright," Luffy stated. "Okay, Nami! Hold on tight!"

"Yeah," she mumbled.

"If you're really set on going, I won't stop you," Dalton said.

Addy turned towards him and placed her hand on her whip. "I'm pretty sure you couldn't even try."

Dalton hesitated but pointed behind him. "But at least climb up from the other side. There are Lapins on this course. Fierce carnivorous rabbits. If you encounter a pack of them, you're as good as dead."

"Rabbits?" Luffy said. "But we're in a hurry."

"Right," Addy said rolling her eyes. "I'm sure death awaits us with nasty big pointy teeth."

"Yeah, we should be fine. Right?"

"Yeah," Sanji replied. "I'll kick them.

"Kick?!" Dalton exclaimed. "You can't be serious! You'd be walking to your deaths!"

"It's okay," Luffy said preparing to start off. "Alright then! Let's go Sanji! Addy! Before Nami dies!" Luffy took off like a shot and Addy soon bolted after him, surpassing him in a few strides. She would have to remember to slow down so that she didn't leave those two behind.

"What?!" Sanji yelled easily catching up to the two of them. "Don't say things that could jinx us, you dumbass!" Luffy laughed and Addy heard the crunch of snow under their feet. She smiled as well. Despite everything, they still managed to get an adventure. If this was going to be her last, she was going to make sure it succeeded. Nami depended on it.

…

Wind had started picking up, howling through the air and the snow was even thicker. Not individual snowflakes but big white clumps falling from the sky. It did not even phase Addy. The snow rolled off of her, not biting into her skin. Instead it gave her a sense of calm and a heightening of senses. The same as if she dove in Ocean. Luffy and Sanji however were severely slowed down, the deep treads in the snow a mark of that though they were still managing to keep running.

"It's gotten a little colder," Luffy pointed out. "The wind's picking up."

"So why aren't you wearing shoes," Sanji asked. Addy looked back and saw that Sanji was right. Luffy was only wearing his sandals. "Just seeing that is painful!"

"This is my police!"

"Police?! You mean policy!"

"Yeah!"

"Unfortunately, guys it is only going to get colder from here," Addy added on. "The higher we go the worse it's going to get." It was then that Addy heard a thump and the crunch of snow in the direction ahead of them as well as an inhuman growl. She placed her hand on her whip. They could not afford to slow down.

"Anyway, did you know? People in snowy countries never sleep!" Luffy stated.

"Huh? Why's that?" Sanji asked.

"Cause they'll die if they go to sleep!"

"Okay first off, that's not true," Addy said. "Though I would love to know who told you that. And second I'm pretty sure that there is something nearby." She heard the growl again as they passed a cluster of pine trees. "Very nearby." She heard the same crunch and thump and the next thing she knew a giant white rabbit appeared straight out of the trees and went for them. The three of them dodged without any effort. So there really was nothing to be worried about.

"Usopp I bet," Sanji replied.

"No!" Luffy responded. "I heard it in a pub in my village!" The rabbit pulled itself out of the snow and had started to chase them. Poor bunny. Addy almost felt bad for the thing once it caught up.

"Then why did that Dalton guy have a bed?"

"That's a good point." The bunny sailed over their heads once again. It really was just a minor nuisance. "Maybe it's for when he dies then?"

"I think it's more of the fact that if you fall asleep in snow humans risky dying of extreme cold," Addy stated. The bunny managed to cut down a tree threatening to send it toppling on them. Though it only landed right in front of them and the three of them jumped over it.

"Okay did you know this?" Sanji asked. "Women in snowy lands all have silky-smooth skin!"

"How come?" Luffy wondered.

"Isn't it obvious? Whenever you're cold, you rub your skin for warmth." The bunny came flying again and missed them completely. "So you get smooth skin." And came at them again. "So women in snowy places have such silky-smooth white skin!" And just kept coming at them.

"How come it's white?"

"Because the color of the constantly falling snow dyes their skin!

"Actually, I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the lack of sunlight," Addy said. "At least that's why I'm so pale. Don't get much sun deep in Ocean after all." The bunny was getting really persistent but they dodged it each and every time. "Also, I swore that snow dried out skin but I wouldn't exactly call myself an expert."

"You know a lot about snowy countries Addy," Luffy said.

"More like I have been to a lot. My moth…. My former captain Sarabi had an infinity for snow and ice."

The bunny screamed and launched itself at them. "Quit being so damn annoying," Sanji shouted kicking the rabbit through the air.

"What was with that guy?" Luffy asked.

"Well, that's no ordinary rabbit," Addy said.

Wind started picking up even further, snow becoming thicker.

"Hang in there Nami dear!" Sanji stated. "We're going to get you to a doctor!"

"The snow's really deep around here," Luffy exclaimed. There feet were sinking even deeper into the snow.

"We are going to be dealing with a lot more of it," Addy pointed out. "Be careful, there could be a lot of debris right under the snow."

"Hey Luffy," Sanji said. "Run more smoothly! You're going to make Nami dear worse!" They ran over the crest of a hill and Addy came to a dead stop. Luffy and Sanji stopped right next to her and just stared. Before them was what looked like an entire warren of giant white rabbits.

"W-what are these?" Sanji asked.

"Some of the most foul, cruel, and bad-tempered rodent you ever set eyes on," Addy answered still trying to believe what she was seeing. "If our previous encounter was anything to go by."

"They're white and big, so they're polar bears! I'm sure of it!" Luffy proclaimed.

"Actually I'm pretty sure they're the carnivorous rabbits the guy earlier was talking about. The fluffy ears sort of give it away."

"No, pretty sure it's a polar bear."

The rabbits didn't seem to happy with that idea. The growls they emitted shook up the trees around them. One of them launched itself in the air.

"It jumped!" Sanji remarked.

"Yeah, they do that," Addy responded. "Were you not paying any attention to the one earlier?" They dodged out of the way as the rabbit landed exactly where they were standing moments before sending piles of snow up in the air.

"You gotta be kidding me! How can it move like that? "What is it, a gorilla?"

"It's a rabbit! Of course, it can move like that!" He must be really distracted by Nami's condition if he wasn't even hearing what she was saying.

"Right, forgive me Addy sweet."

"No! A polar bear!" Luffy pointed out

"It's a bunny," Sanji yelled at him.

"You're the one who just called it a gorilla."

"These must be the Lapins that Dalton was talking about!"

"Great, are we all on the same page now?!" Addy asked. "Because I really do not want to be eaten by carnivorous rabbits."

* * *

PippinSqueaks- So now you finally have your answer. Really hope it was worth waiting for.

Hikari302: Yeah that did not happen. But the next chapter should be up soon.

Jag: Oh it really is not going to work. It is actually going to backfire shortly. Her meeting with the doctor is not going to go her way either.

grace-adalyn: Thanks. My goal was to put it in more mature terms. Hopefully you'll continue to enjoy the story.

paulavara140: This comment was what actually got me to start writing again. So thank you for getting me motivated again.


	88. Lost in Snowfall Part 4

_Author's Note:_

 _This was one of the worst chapters to write in awhile. Hopefully I did it well. We are getting closer to Addy seeing the doctor. As always please review and let me know what you think. Also there is some minor Sanji/Nami._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Carnivorous rabbits. Really? Addy knew that Dalton had warned them about this but she didn't exactly take him seriously. Regular people tended to be scared over what were actually minor threats. Besides the massive numbers of rabbits in front of them, there was one particularly large one that seemed to be the boss of all the rabbits or something. It had a scar right above its left eye. Addy was just wondering how they were going to get out of this mess. It was then that she heard some whimpering, as if a voice was desperately trying to speak.

"Nami," Luffy stated.

"Nami dear?" Sanji remarked.

"We have to…. hurry to Alabasta…" Nami groaned. It sounded like it pained her to do even that much. Addy hoped that Alabasta was going to be a heaping pile of ruins when they got there. Hopefully they would just dump Princess and leave. Though if her kingdom was destroyed she would no longer be royalty. That might make her better in the long run if Captain decided to keep her around out of pity.

"Never mind that, just rest," Luffy said. "Don't worry about anything right now."

"When her own life is at risk," Sanji stated smiling a little. He was falling for her. Sanji was a lovesick puppy with everyone but Nami somehow was special. Maybe someday she would return his feelings. "Nami dear hang in there just a little longer." Sanji turned and faced the bunnies. Addy placed her hand on her whip and unfurled it. She knew what was about to happen. "We have to go to that castle where the doctor lives. Get out of our way you damn bunnies!" The largest one raised its head as if pondering what Sanji said. Clearly it didn't like it as Addy noticed it shift, getting ready to pounce on them.

"They're coming," Luffy said.

"Yeah," Sanji replied before turning to face Luffy who also looked like he was gearing towards a fight. "Listen Luffy!"

"Hm?"

"Don't you dare fight."

"Why not?"

"Idiot! Whether you attack or get struck, Nami dear will feel the whole impact too!"

"Sanji's right. Let us handle this Captain," Addy added in getting ready to launch herself at the rabbits. This was not going to be easy. She might be only slightly more adapted to the environment than they were. Why didn't she have the same affinity for ice and snow that Sarabi did? Why did she get waterfalls? No one ever fights by a waterfall. She blamed her mother for that one. "She'll die otherwise."

"What?" Luffy gasped. At that moment that rabbit roared showing their sharp pointy teeth. Long canines that could easily tear through flesh if they got a hold of it. "O-Okay! I won't fight!" All the rabbits launched themselves at once straight towards them. "B-but what do I do?!" He dodged the largest one. Sanji was busy dodging as well while Addy went straight for them. She was like a bullet, moving so quickly the others could barely see her amid the snowfall. While the whip wasn't doing much damage because of their thick fur it still hurt, if their growls were anything to go by, as she flicked it across several rabbits. They could not even touch her. She was an absolute flurry, just like the snow around her.

"Just dodge! Dodge, dodge, dodge, and run!" Sanji shouted. Luffy had his hands full with the largest one. "But don't retreat!"

"That's hard!" Luffy yelled back.

"You have to Captain," Addy stated weaving herself around the rabbits doing what damage she could though in reality she was probably a little more than an annoyance. Not for the first time she considered upgrading her whip, but it was a gift from Riley and David after the last one was frayed. The only way she would replace it was if it was torn to shreds. Still at times like this she wished it had more bite to it. Though she didn't think either of them were expecting her to fight killer snow rabbits. And if they did they would expect the fight to be a lot more one sided. The rabbits wouldn't stand a chance.

As a rabbit launched itself at Sanji he kicked it straight in the stomach though Addy also noticed him drifting through the snow. He wasn't able to keep proper footing. "Flanchet Shoot!" The attack sent the rabbit colliding through the snow towards another group of rabbits. Or was it the same one? Addy was losing track of everything. Even with the snow she could feel her body failing her.

"Not now…." she muttered drawing further strength from the environment around her. "Last a little longer. You have too." She felt herself clear up and her senses strengthen but it was only a temporary fix. It would have to do. Not until Nami was safe and well on Merry would she let herself crumble. Not until the Log Pose was back where it needed to be. Only then would she fall into Ocean and let herself disappear into the waves. Never to rise again.

"Dammit!" Sanji yelled. "In this snow, I can't kick properly!" This was bad. Luffy couldn't fight and Sanji was handicapped. Not that Sanji was doing badly by any means but it was nothing like he could do if was on sure ground. Addy wished Zoro was here as well. His swords would go through these bunnies like Merry with Ocean. She briefly wondered what he was up to. Probably some incredibly dumb training regimen that he shouldn't be doing by himself. As long as he wasn't lost than everything was good

Addy was brought back into the situation when out of the new group of rabbits one of them flicked its ear and they all launched themselves at the four of them.

"They're all attacking at once!" Luffy pointed out still dodging the large one behind them. It was really aiming for Luffy. A though flashed in Addy's mind if the giant killer leader rabbit knew that Luffy was there Captain. Would be smarter than some people if that was the case.

"I don't think I have a choice," Addy said holding the whip so that it was above her head and the tail of it fell to the side forming a sort of arch over her head. "Lautan salju yg turun!" If she was fast before then this was supersonic. Each time Sanji and Luffy blinked she was somewhere else. Addy finished pulling the whip handle over her head slashing her whip in an arc twisting her whip and making it dance all over the place, the tail biting into anything it touched. She kept moving at the same time to get her a maximum amount of coverage. The flicks covered the rabbit like the falling snow as she ran through the group of rabbits twice landing her whip in the exact places she had hit before. A moment later she was back beside her nakama. She was breathing hard and felt slightly dizzy. The last time she did that move was before she started drinking and it took a lot out of her then. However, it did slow down the rabbits. They were looking at them more apprehensively and they were slightly slower in their manic hopping.

"Go into the forest," she yelled at them. Hopefully that would provide some cover. The rabbits seemed to prefer more open ground.

"Okay!" Luffy responded heading straight for the trees, followed by Sanji. Addy barely made it into the cover herself before the rabbits landed where they were moments before. Guess she was wrong about the open ground thing. Snow was sent flying through the air and now a giant pile of it was following them. Addy sprinted ahead of Luffy and Sanji, desperation and adrenaline kicking in. If they got lost it would be the end of Nami. Her heart was pounding and her legs screamed but none of that mattered. For the Log Pose burned more than anything else.

"Keep following me!" she shouted, turning left towards the mountain.

"We'll shake them off somehow!" Sanji bellowed. "It'd take us into the night to finish fighting them!" Sanji was right about that. It seemed like the area was infested with them. Another one popped up from the side. "These snow mountain animals really are tough! We're at a disadvantage even with Addy sweet." Another one came at them from their other side and jumped. As if on instinct Luffy readied himself to attack but Sanji stopped him and kicked the rabbit himself. This knocked Luffy's hat off which Sanji immediately grabbed. The rabbit landed with a thump, sending up snow as it landed. "Idiot! I told you not to attack! Just leave them to me and Addy sweet!"

"Sorry…" Luffy mumbled as Sanji placed the straw hat back on his head. Unfortunately, there were rabbits still in front and behind them.

"Sanji cover our backs!" Addy ordered. "I got the front. I think I see a rock wall we can go up not far ahead." The next several minutes were spent fending off rabbits trying desperately to protect Nami. Addy's whip was an absolute frenzy. Desperately trying to keep the path clear so that they could keep moving ahead. Sanji was having just as hard of a time. Rabbits just kept popping up, one after another. It seemed like there was no end to them. However, both of them pushed through. Each rabbit meant another delay, another second where Nami wasn't getting treatment. The witch better be there when they finally made it. If it turned out she was in the village or something Addy was going to kill somebody.

Eventually they made it to the rock wall that Addy spotted ahead and luck seemed to be on their side as a rabbit perfectly jumped out. Using it as a sort of trampoline the three of them launched themselves up, landing perfectly on the ledge and leaving the rabbits on the ground below them. Saved them time from trying to climb the thing, or having Luffy stretch and take them up. Luffy being Luffy stuck his tongue out at them. However, all three of them seemed to forget one simple thing.

"They are freaking rabbits," Addy yelled as the animals leaped up to join them. The three of them ran around in circles for a moment panicking before taking off again.

"They're coming!" Luffy announced.

"You don't need to egg them out!" Sanji shouted at him.

"Just run you two," Addy stated. "We got to make it to the top of that mountain. Run away. Run away." Nami's life depended on it.

…

They had been running for what felt like hours and the mountain only seemed somewhat closer. It still loomed in the distance but at least they were making progress. The rabbits might have actually helped in that regard, it pushed them to move even faster than before. Not that they were going slowly but they weren't exactly sprinting up a mountain trying not to get eaten by something that is usually a lot smaller and way cuddlier. The rabbits were close on their heels for most of the journey. Addy could hear their thumping and growling even with Wind increasing. Yet at some point the sounds got quieter, so much so that Addy hadn't heard anything for a little while. Which was some good news. At this point they could use all the good news possible. On top of everything else going on the snow was piling on heavier as well. She had no idea if the others could see even a few feet ahead of them. It seemed like everything was set against them.

"Are they coming?" Luffy asked.

"No, they aren't," Sanji answered.

"All right! Looks like we lost them."

"I wish that was the case," Addy said looking up above them. There was a group of rabbit further up the mountain looking down at them. Somehow the stupid creatures managed to pass them and somehow get ahead. Addy wished she knew whatever shortcuts they did. Would make life a lot easier at the moment if they did.

"They're persistent," Luffy stated. That was putting it mildly. These things were after their blood and weren't going to stop until they had it. Suddenly the rabbits started hopping in place and Addy got a really bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. They were just moving up and down but Addy could feel the snow starting to crumble under their feet. A shift in the ground. It wasn't loose snow but entire slabs. Stuck together, cohesive and ready to move.

"What're they doing?" Luffy asked. "Are they irritated because they're hungry?"

"Ocean help us," Addy mumbled. They were trying to create an avalanche. Not trying succeeding as Addy saw the massive pile of snow starting to move towards them. The rumblings ran through her entire body. Sanji opened his mouth in shock and the cigarette fell into the snow. The snow putting out the light and smothering the smoke. All they could do was stare, frozen at the sight of what was coming at them. Addy cursed herself, wishing that she was stronger. That she wasn't this weak. Sarabi would have been able to stop it in its tracks with a flick of her wrist. Addy could not even stop a snowflake. Chances were that she would survive the avalanche but the others….. Captain, Sanji, Nami, they would not be so lucky. Unless she found their bodies in 19 minutes or so then their chances of survival were slim. Luffy would have the best chance but all it would take is one puncture from a sharp rock or branch and he was done. Addy did not even want to imagine the looks of utter horror that Usopp and Zoro would have as she carried their three dead bodies down the mountain. What would they even do at that point? What would she do?

"Those damn bunnies… have really done it!" Sanji said. Tears had started to form but they were frozen instantly. "This can't be happening…." He had the same look of horror that she had. As if death was coming straight for them. They could deal with anything else. But a force of nature of that magnitude. All hope was dashed. Addy clenched her fist. If only she could do something.

"Hey, Sanji, Addy what's the matter?" Luffy asked. "What the heck is going on?"

"We are going to have to run!" Addy shouted. "As hard and as fast as you possible can!" Not that they would stand a chance. There was no way to outrun a pack of snow traveling that quickly. But they had to try. Maybe find something they could use to shield themselves. If Addy had to drag their broken but still alive bodies up the mountain, then she would. Another nakama was not dying on her watch.

"What? Run? Where to?"

"Doesn't matter where!" Sanji added in. "Someplace far! An avalanche is coming!"

* * *

Hikari302: They are going to find out rather soon. Or at least one crew member is. Hopefully there well be a more regular update schedule.

Jag: One of the things alcohol does is mellow out Addy a little. Without it she has a bit more bite or is at least more sarcastic. Also can't stand dying nakama which isn't helping the situation. Trying to get the right vibe being her and Vivi has been a challenge and the meeting will be interesting to say the least.


	89. Lost in Snowfall Part 5

_Author's Note:_

 _Yes I am back. Honestly I would set up a better schedule but life keeps deciding that it wants to be busy. Of course to start off the trend of me being back is one of my least favorite chapters yet. Partly because I'm a little bit out of writing and this particular episode did not give me much to work with. This is also the first chapter where Addy is blacked out for some time. Meaning that we are actually going to be skipping some episodes. I try to avoid this as much as possible but sometimes it just happens. I hope you guys enjoy it at least. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"R-run?!" Luffy stammered. "Where to?!" Addy could hear the trees starting to snap under the weight of the snow, despite how loud Wind was blowing. The rumble of the snow was getting louder. The dull roar becoming louder and louder. She could feel her heartbeat in her ears, yet she was not exactly scared. She was scared for her crew, but for herself she felt exhilaration. Excitement running through her body, like when the run across a storm on the sea. Yet there was still her body, pushing the last of its strength and the hole in soul her that could never be full. Even now she did not feel free. At that moment, she wished that she could feel free one more time before her life trickled to an end.

"Doesn't matter where!" Sanji replied. "Somewhere far!" The rabbits just jumped out of the way of the snow barreling down towards them, scurrying off to whatever hiding place that they had. Those things had given them more trouble than some groups of Marines had. Which either said a lot about the strength of these rabbits or how weak Marines were. Addy went with the later.

"What?!"

"An avalanche! An avalanche is coming!" Luffy started screaming once Sanji stated that the avalanche was approaching. The three of them took off down the mountain as fast as they could. While Addy could move much faster than the other two she kept pace. There was a greater chance of them surviving if she stuck close by. The large amount of snow was really slowing them down, though they were moving with Wind so that was no longer hindering them. Besides the snow was rushing so quickly, Addy wasn't even sure that she would be able to out run it. It was crushing trees in its path and all Addy could hear was its mad roar and the crunch of snow under their hurried steps. It didn't help that it was still snowing heavily, adding to the chaos around them. Snowflakes flurrying in the air. Addy was surprised Sanji and Luffy could even see anything in front of them.

"Ahhh!" Sanji shouted. "Those damn bunnies! They'll never get away with this! Dammit!"

"I think they already have!" Addy yelled back. "Unless you want to go back and start rabbit hunting?!"

"Wh-wh-wh-what're we gonna do?!" Luffy cried. "Wh-wh what're gonna do, Addy?! Sanji?!"

"How should I know?!" Sanji shouted back. "The first priority is Nami dear!" The snow was right behind them. They were only a few steps ahead. "The second is Nami dear! The third is Nami dear! The fourth is Nami dear and the fifth is Nami dear! Got that?!"

"I think he's got it Sanji!" Addy stated. "Just keep running! No matter what just keep going! Our only chance is to see if we can find some shelter ahead. Some outcropping, a cliff, anything at this point would do!" Sanji leapt ahead of her and Luffy taking the lead. He was trying to plow a path in the snow for Luffy. Addy was one step behind Luffy making sure that nothing happened to Nami. One false step on Luffy's part and they could both go tumbling. The chance of Nami surviving that was next to nothing. At least she was passed out at the moment. Addy couldn't even begin to imagine how she would feel if she knew what was currently happening.

"Protect her even if it kills you!" Sanji yelled.

Got it!" Luffy responded. "But how?!" That was a very good question at the moment and Addy had no idea how to answer him. All she could do was scan her horizons. See if there was anywhere that they could shelter. Suddenly not too far away she spotted a cliff on their right. While it wasn't much it was something. It might be high enough to avoid the majority of the avalanche.

"Over there!" Sanji shouted. Looks like he spotted the same thing. "That cliff!" Sanji took off towards it. Her and Luffy quickly followed him.

"Cliff?!" Luffy asked.

"Run! We need to get up as high as we can!" The avalanche was getting even closer. The grinding of snow even louder. It would not be long before it enveloped them all. "It's coming!"

Luffy managed to get ahead of them as they made a beeline for the cliff. Sheer determination powering his footsteps. Sanji was right behind him. His head was down trying to keep the snow out of his eyes. His blond hair catching in Wind. They only had a matter of seconds before the snow came and the chill makes their blood run cold. Luckily, they just made it to the cliff with a few seconds to spare. Right before the snow reached them, all three of them jumped and landed on the cliff, managing to be just above the raging snow. While it wasn't the greatest landing, they all managed to be relatively intact. No one broke anything at least.

"Good, we made… Ahh!" Sanji started to say before more snow started heading directly towards them. So much for this safe haven. They didn't even have time to catch their breath. Each of them were panicked. Luffy's eyes were wide and his mouth hung open. Same for Sanji. Addy looked at it with grim determination. She was not going to let snow of all things defeat her.

"Oh no!" Sanji uttered. "We're not high enough!" The snow sent them flying through the air, their screams being caught by Wind. Luffy was still in the air with Nami while Sanji landed on his back in the avalanche. While Addy was still in the air, she wrapped her whip around one of his legs and pulled herself towards him careful not to hurt him. She landed next to him on the avalanche standing perfectly on the snow. She was moving with the snow, it giving her forward momentum but she kept her balance. It was like she was skating.

"Hold on," she said hooking the other end of her whip to her belt. If they got separated Sanji was as good as dead. Trying to find him in all this snow would be almost impossible. Even for her.

"What do I do now?!" Luffy asked. He was still in the air.

"Figure it out!" Addy yelled back up at him. Knowing Luffy he would come up with something at the last moment to save himself. Right now, she had to focus on Sanji whose was the more immediate risk of dying.

"Oh yeah!" While Luffy was starting to sort himself out Sanji was panicking, struggling against the onslaught of snow. His limbs were flailing about as he tried to get purchase on anything. She could see the fear in his eyes and she did not blame him. The fact that he remained calm so far was impressive. In the middle of the raging snow with the whole world crashing down around them, with no control over their own fate anybody would panic.

"Calm down," Addy told him gripping one of his hands. "I got you."

"Addy sweet, save yourself," he sputtered out. His movements were becoming sluggish. It was taking more effort to struggle against the snow. It wouldn't be long before his body gave up on him.

"I'm not the one at risk of dying here. Just try to keep your head up." She tightened her grip on his arm. There was no way she was going to let the snow claim him. "I'm not going to let you go you here me. Nami would kill me if you got killed trying to save her."

"Sanji! Addy! Grab my hand!" Luffy shouted stretching out an arm towards them. He was somewhere behind them, hopefully safe. Addy managed to latch onto his hand and Luffy pulled both her and Sanji towards him. They landed right behind him. Apparently Luffy managed to get on a tree and was riding it down the mountain like a sled. A badly made sled that they couldn't steer, but a sled nonetheless.

"You saved my skin!" Sanji said to him, looking at Luffy surprised. He landed right behind Luffy and Addy behind him. Addy wasn't sure why Sanji was surprised that Luffy grabbed them. It's not like Captain to abandon his crew. Did Sanji have low self-esteem or something? That would be something to look into. If she wasn't going to die once she got off this island. "As did you Addy sweet! Your courage and beauty know no bounds."

"Cut it Sanji, now is not a good time," Addy huffed before turning towards Luffy. "You saved both of us."

"Yeah, but…" Luffy responded. "Even though we won't sink in the snow, we'll go straight down the mountain if we don't do anything!"

"What?!" Sanji yelled out. "Hell no! We've come all this way and were almost at the foot of that chimney mountain!" The chimney mountain that was slowly disappearing in the distance being hidden by all the snow coming down. They were plummeting down the mountain. Addy could see the houses starting to get clearer and more distinct. "We were just a step away from the doctor! Luffy! Come up with a way to stop this! Dammit, those damn hopping bunnies. Next time I see them, I'll simmer them in a pot!" It was then that one of the rabbits showed up next to them snowboarding on a plank of wood. Addy reached for her whip but remembered that she was still tied to Sanji. This was bad.

"What?!" Luffy shouted.

"Does the universe hate us that much right now?!" Addy asked. "Like really?! Would a little good luck be too much to ask for?!" More snowboarding rabbits started showing up, barring their massive fangs. They kept launching attacks but luckily the three of them were managing to evade. The rabbits were struggling almost as much with the avalanche as the three of them were.

"What're we going to do, Sanji?! Addy?!" Luffy asked them. Other then die horribly Addy wasn't having any ideas.

"There's only one way!" Sanji stated. "Run!" Sanji stood up to see if he could guide the snowboard better. Addy stood up with him and together the two of them seemed to have some amount of control. Having her whip tied around his leg allowed Addy to tell what direction he was moving in, allowing her to coordinate her movements with his. It wasn't perfect. They were still slightly out of sync. Some training together might help with that. That is if Addy was actually going to continue the journey with them.

Despite their efforts, the rabbits were still hot on their heels. There was no getting rid of them. "What the heck's…. with them?!" Their teeth and claws got way to close for comfort. Luffy's face was almost clawed to pieces while Sanji almost had his head bitten off. Some of them went after Addy as well, attempting to go after her back. She moved around them as easily as the other two did.

"Oh no!" Sanji shouted. "Luffy! Addy sweet! Look ahead! Ahead!" Addy swiftly turned away from the rabbits and found what Sanji was looking at. Right in front of them was a giant rock with three broken trees growing out of it, the stumps turned into jagged spikes. There was no way around it. They were blocked on all sides by rabbits. Even if her and Sanji were more coordinated they probably couldn't dodge around that even if it was the case.

"Ahh!" Luffy screamed. "A rock! We're going to crash!"

"You can't crash! You're carrying Nami dear!" Sanji responded.

"That's easy to say, but…!" The snow was pounding in their ears, added to by the roaring rabbits who were launching another attack against them. There was really no way out of this situation. "We're crashing!"

It was then that Addy noticed Sanji grabbing the collar of Luffy's jacket and she knew what he was doing. Her only job now was keeping Sanji alive.

"You have to treat ladies…gently!" he said as he threw Luffy behind them. "Take of Nami dear and Addy sweet!"

"Keep her safe!" Addy added on before turning towards Sanji. "Wait what did you say?! We are still tied-"

"Sanji, Addy!" Luffy yelled at them as the tree hit the rock. It broke apart instantly and Sanji crashed into the snow while she landed on top. She thought she heard a sickening crunch and Sanji cough up blood. He probably fell on top of some debris or maybe the shards of the tree hit him when it broke apart. Whatever happened this only made a bad situation worse. Now they had to carry two injured people up the mountain.

"Ahh… That hit me good! Dammit!" Addy heard him groan. before falling limp. This really wasn't good. The rabbits landed right next to them as well, though they all seemed to be passed out. Small miracle but that barely improved the situation they were in. She hoped that Luffy found a safe spot, while she worked on saving Sanji. Sanji was really sinking into the snow, his head going under. She did the only thing that she could think of doing and dove right into the snow.

Swimming in snow had a different feel to it then water. It wasn't as fluid, though Addy could breath as easily. Her movements were more haltered though that di d not stop her. It was like comparing the swimming tactics of a seal to a shark. Not as graceful or fluid but streamlined regardless. The fast speed of the snow did not help any either. Thank Ocean she connected the two of them together. She would have lost Sanji at this point if she hadn't. Sanji was just in front of her, clearly out of it. The blow must have caused him to fall unconscious. At some point, it seemed that he lost a glove. Addy pushed through the snow towards him. It flowed across her body, though rocks and various other debris got in her way. Dodging around the was not as easy as she hoped. A few managed to scrape against her skin but the snow prevented any major blood loss.

After more time had passed than Addy wanted. She managed to get under him, ready to push him up towards the surface. He had somehow managed to flip himself so that he was facing the ground. If he did wake up he would probably start digging the wrong way. Unlike her the chances for him suffocating were much higher, plus the snow around her didn't confuse her senses. She knew which way was up. As she was trying to push him up through the snow she did not notice the large rock that they were tumbling towards. It wasn't until she cracked her head against it and everything started to slowly turn back that she thought she should have been paying more attention.

* * *

grace-adalyn: I find Vivi to be a bit of a problem character. I have always been neutral about her. Not because she is bad but because she seems really useless. There are all these holes to her character that I wanted to explore and who better to point them out then Addy.

Guest 1: You have no earthly idea. Everything will be revealed shortly.

Jag: The Straw Hats struggle against these rabbits more than the do some minor villains.

Tanjatailor: It is definitely not going to be in Addy's favor. It's going to land Addy in a bit of trouble for awhile.

Kmbrun: Glad to know that I have another fan. Hope to start updating more frequently however.

Guest 2: I have read to many bad OC One Piece stories that I eventual caved and made my own. I am really looking forward to Water 7 and Enies Lobby. There are going to be some big developments happening for Addy. I personally hesitated labeling this a OC X Zoro story because that's not really what its about. It's happening in the background and is a major part of the story, but its as much about Addy's relationship with the crew and her journey. Eventually I did decide to change it because I know not everyone likes canon characters with OCs so might as well let them know what they are getting into.


	90. Lost in Snowfall Part 6

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter has been a long time coming though we are not quite to the full payoff yet. This has also been one of the hardest chapters to write because of the weight I wanted to get across. I hope I did it well. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

Addy woke up somewhat in a daze, not exactly sure where she was. When she opened her eyes, everything was slightly blurry. Bring her hand to her head to check for any damage she felt a tug on her arm. She tried moving her other arm and felt the same tug. Blinking a few times to clear her vision she noticed that she was in some sort of glass tank filled with water. The water itself was cold, so probably freshly melted snow and ice. The tank itself was long enough that she had some room at her feet and wide enough that she could flip over. If she sat up her head would break the surface. Looking at her arms she noticed what looked like tubes pumping in and out various liquids. What they were Addy didn't have the faintest idea. What she did know is that while she felt somewhat woozy, this was also the strongest and most alert she had felt in a long time.

Turning her head around to get a better feeling of the room she was in Addy saw that she was right next to a window. Turning the other way she saw a door leading out of the room as well as a hospital bed right next to her tank. There was enough space between her tank and the bed that someone could stand between. What brought Addy to full focus however was that Nami was sitting up in the bed talking to some weird looking creature in the doorway who promptly tumbled backwards knocking several things over.

"Nami!" Addy cried out sitting up so that the upper half of her body broke free of the water. "How are you doing?! Are you feeling better?! Fever going down?!" The sense of death was no longer radiating from her though Addy could tell she was not yet fully herself. The crashing was still going on in the background throwing dust into the room.

"Addy," Nami said softly turning towards her.

"Be quiet, Chopper!" A voice called out from the other room. It sounded like an older woman. When the dust cleared from the other room Addy saw that it was an older woman though she was dressed like a teenager. A shirt that was baring her midriff, low riding pants and a naval ring well as carrying a green bottle in her hand. She also seemed to have on two glasses at once. One resting on her forward while a pair of sunglasses covered her eyes. She walked over towards them placing herself between the tank and the bed.

"You must be the doctor," Addy said. "I'm-"

"Get back in the tank you," the doc told her placing her hand over Addy's face and shoving her down back into the tank causing some of the water to splash around. "I better not see you out of it. I'll deal with your idiocy later."

'What the heck is her problem,' Addy thought as the crazy doctor lady turned towards Nami. "Your fever seems to have come down a little, girl. Are you happy?" She poked Nami in the forehead and started drinking from the bottle.

"Who are you?" Nami asked.

The doc seemed to ignore the question. "38.2 degrees… Hmm… You're doing more or less all right." Addy breathed a sigh of relief. Nami was going to be okay. "I'm a doctor. Dr. Kureha. Call me Doctorine."

"Doctor? Then I'm in the-" Nami started looking around the room as well.

"My secret to staying young?"

"No I didn't ask that."

"Eh, doesn't matter. Your idiot friend there already knows it. If she can even call herself that."

"What do you mean?" Addy asked sitting up before being pushed back into the tank again.

"What did I tell you?" Doctorine said before taking a long swig out of her bottle. "Do not get out of the tank. You have not been fully detoxed yet." Detoxed? The doctor walked until she was standing in front of the two of them. "You're right. You're in the castle on top of the mountain."

"Then there were two others besides me and Addy right?" Nami asked.

"Yeah, they're sleeping in the next room very deeply." Addy let out another sigh of relief. Sounded like they were all going to be okay. "What tough guys." Doctorine then sat down on Nami's bed. Addy could hear it squeak under her weight. She then lifted up Nami's shirt and revealed a purplish bruise making sure that Addy could see it as well. "This was the cause."

"What is this?"

"You were bitten by a bug called Kestia. It's a poisonous tick that lives in jungles with high temperatures and humidity. Once you're bitten by it, bacteria come in and keep you in pain by lying dormant inside your body for five days. It causes a high fever of above 40 degrees, coinfection, myocarditis, arteritis, cerebritis! Given the infection's progression from the bitten area, I'd say you've been infected for three days. The suffering must've been unusually harsh, but it would've eased up in two more days even without any treatment." Wait they came all this way for nothing? Addy knew her senses were off but she didn't think they were that off.

"In two more days?" Nami wondered.

"Yeah, because you would've died in two days." Addy was really glad they came then. The really could not have afforded to waste any time.

"What?!"

The doctor stood up again. "It's called the five-day disease. I heard that Kestia died out 100 years ago, but it was useful that I kept the antibiotic just in case. Where did you guys come from? Were you out walking around with your belly exposed in a jungle on an ancient island or something?" She chuckled as Addy and Nami shared a glance. "Well, that's just silly." She turned back to face Nami. "That ring a bell? What a crazy girl. Now." She shoved Nami back onto the bed. "Stay in bed. Your treatment hasn't completely finished yet."

"Thank you so much. So long as my fever comes down, I'll be fine. My body will take care of itself after that, right?"

"You're too optimistic. This disease normally takes at least ten days to fully treat. Of course if you want to suffer some more and die. Even with my medicine you'll have to rest at least three days. Which is also how long it will take your friends system to be cleaned out."

"What?" They both asked though this time Addy stayed in the water though she suspected she came out garbled.

"I can't stay here for three days! Nami stated sitting back up. "Besides there is nothing wrong with Addy!"

"That's what you think," Doctorine snapped. "She had even less time then you did. If this wasn't a snowy island she would already be dead."

"What are you even talking about?" The alcohol. The doctor knew about the alcohol. Addy was an idiot. She should have figured that the doc would find out. But she was so worried about Nami that she didn't even think about it.

Nami shook her head. "Besides we have to take Vivi to Alabasta."

Doctorine twirled a scalpel in her hands before grabbing Nami's wrist and pinning her to the bed, scalpel at her throat. Addy was ready to launch herself out of the tank but got tangled up in all the tubes.

"When a patient of mine leaves me," Doctorine cackled. "She's either cured or dead. I won't let you get away. Now let me untangle your friend there." She walked over to the tank and without even flinching plunged her hands into the cold water turning Addy all sorts of ways until she was back where she was before, tubes right where they should be. "Now let's start talking about you."

"Ahhh! Help!" Another voice called out from the other room. This one was younger and male. Next thing they knew a tiny reindeer walking on two feet with a blue nose came screaming out of the room with Luffy and Sanji holding onto him.

"Wait, meat!" Luffy shouted as the reindeer dragged them around the room. Luffy started trying to eat its arm.

"Wait, Luffy," Sanji called out. "I'll cook this guy!" They sped through the room and down into another leaving a cloud of dust in their wake before bursting through another door.

Suddenly Luffy let go of the reindeer and walked over to Nami's bedside. "Nami," he stated.

Sanji also came leaping towards her. "Nami dear," he said.

"You got better?" Luffy asked.

"Yeah, thanks," Nami responded.

"Addy, you doing okay?"

"Never better Captain."

"Okay then!" Sanji added in grabbing his forearm. "I'll make a nutritious venison dish for Nami dear and some great fish for Addy sweet." The reindeer in question was attempting to sneak out of the room when Sanji and Luffy spotted him trying to leave.

"Wait!" The two of them shouted at him before starting up the chase again.

"I'm surprised." Doctorine stated. "They can already move around?"

"What's that talking stuffed deer with a blue nose?" Nami asked.

"You asking me what he is? His name is Chopper. He's just a reindeer with a blue nose."

"Reindeers don't speak."

"If he's different from ordinary reindeers in some way…." You mean in other then the fact that he is bipedal and can talk.

"If he's different?"

"It's just because he ate a Human Human fruit. That's all." Well that makes sense. Reindeer mystery solved then.

"A Human Human fruit. One of the Devil Fruits."

"Yeah… He's a reindeer who gained the humans' abilities. And I taught him everything I know about medicine. Now let me go make dinner for your friends before they decide to eat him." Addy watched as Doctorine left the room, relief flooding her veins. Looks like she was spared.

"Addy what did she mean?" Nami asked her turning towards her side. Addy cursed herself hoping that Nami was still too ill to be paying attention. She lifted her head above the water.

"What did she mean about what?" Addy asked.

"About you having less time than I did?"

Addy took a deep breath and shrugged her shoulders. "Don't ask me. She seems a little crazy."

"I suppose."

"Anyway, now that you are feeling better I think that you should have this back." Addy unhooked the Log Pose from her wrist and held it out for Nami to grab. Nami carefully took it back and placed it on her own wrist. Where it should belong before lying back down in bed.

"I knew that you would take care of them," Nami smiled at her. "I can always count on you. You'll never let any of us down." Addy pushed herself back into the tank not wanting Nami to see her tears. When she turned back around to face Nami she saw that she was fast asleep.

Addy thought she might do the same when Doctorine came back in with plates of food followed by Sanji and Luffy who was babbling incessantly. At least that saved Addy from giving introductions. Luffy stopped talking to shove food in his mouth, letting Sanji tell her how exactly they got into this predicament. Addy thought Doctorine also got in a word edgewise. At least letting Sanji and Luffy know that she was the one who treated them. It wasn't long before the food was gone and Luffy slammed his hands on the table.

"Become one of my crew! Please old lady!" Luffy asked. Really? He wanted her to join? Why not the reindeer? He seemed as capable of a doctor. "We need a doctor on our ship!"

"Luffy," Doctorine held up one finger in front of him. "You said that's your name, right?"

"Yeah."

"Did you just say old lady?"

Yeah, I did old la-" Doctorine kicked him swiftly in the face sending Luffy spiraling into the wall. He left an imprint above one of the doors

"Watch what you say!" she shouted. "I'm still in the youthful 130s."

"Whoa," Sanji muttered. "What an incredible old hag." She also sent him face first into a wall where Sanji then slowly drifted to the floor. You think he would learn from what she did to Luffy.

"Are you asking me to be a pirate? Don't be ridiculous!" Doctorine stated. "It would be a waste of my glorious time. I'm not interested in the sea. Healing is where I'm at."

"Who cares?" Luffy asked bleeding from his nose. That blow must have been harder than Addy thought. "Let's go on an adventure, old lady!"

"Hey hey. I just told you to watch what you say, didn't I?" The reindeer decided to peak into the room at that moment though he was terrible at hiding. Most of his body was in plain view. Unfortunately for him Luffy and Sanji also spotted him. Once again the reindeer started screaming as Luffy started chasing him around yelling meat, with Sanji after him. Only this time Doctorine decided to chase after them as well, knocking the chair over as she went after them. Not a moment later did the reindeer coming running in through another door with Luffy and Sanji right after him.

"Hold on Nami dear," Sanji said running in place by her bedside. "I'll cook a nutritious reindeer dish!"

"Before that, I'll eat you guys!" Doctorine yelled as she jumped out carrying two swords.

"Old hag!" Luffy and Sanji screamed their mouths hanging open before taking off away from Doctorine. They ran out another door leaving it open behind them.

"I don't care about the food. I just want some peace and quiet," Nami mumbled.

Addy raised her head above the water. "Somehow I think both are in short supply here." It was then that Addy noticed snow blowing into the room. Despite it being the inside of the castle.

"Snow? Even though its inside the castle?" Nami asked.

"This place is weird. The sooner we get out of here the better," Addy replied.

"Cold…" Nami rubbed her arms. "Do you think you can get the door?"

Addy lifted one of her arms up showing off all the tubes, "Would if I could but I would have to free myself first."

"I should close the door then."

"Stay in bed!" Chopper ordered. Somehow, he managed to avoid both Luffy and Sanji. Perhaps the doctor provided cover. "You still have a fever!"

"I don't," Nami argued. "It seems like it's pretty much gone."

Chopper was looking around as if expecting Sanji and Luffy to come out of the walls. "Looks like I lost them. Even so, no!" He dashed towards the door peaking around the corner. "Since Doctorine's medicine works well, the fever goes away quickly. But Kestia's bacteria still remain in your body." He closed the door, it creaking as he did so. "Have the antibiotics shot and stay in bed, or you'll…." Die Addy guessed is how that sentence ended. Which just meant that she had to make sure Nami stayed in bed. If that inconvenienced Princess than she was definitely all for it.

"Thank you," Nami replied. "You've been attending me, right?" Chopper looked at her and she gave him a smile.

"Shut up!" he yelled at her. He was baring his teeth and waving his arms around. "I don't wanna be thanked by a human!" He then started doing a little dance with a big smile on his face. "Don't mock me! You jerk!" He went back to angry face again. He really had no idea how to socially interact with people. He switched back to dancing again. "Don't be silly, you dummy! Seriously, don't be so…"

"Nice?" Addy asked snapping the reindeer out of his trance or whatever he was in. He then slowly approached Nami, bringing one of his hooves out to touch her.

"Are you guys pirates?" he asked.

"Yes," Nami answered.

"R-real ones?"

"Real ones. Addy has been one the longest."

"Since the day I was born," Addy said.

"You have a flag with a skull?" he wondered.

"It's attached to our ship," Nami replied.

"We actually have a few," Addy added in.

Are you interested in pirates?" Nami asked him.

"No!" he shouted backing away from her quickly into a bookcase. "You idiot! No!" Some of the books came tumbling down and one hit him on the head. "You idiot!"

"Okay, okay." Nami said trying to calm down the small angry reindeer. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry." She looked slight exasperated with him, covering half her face with one hand. The reindeer meanwhile was looking like he had a panic attack. "But then wanna come, too?" She removed her hand and smiled at him.

"What?!"

"To the sea! Why don't you come with us?" She cocked her head slightly. "Hm? If you do that'll help me out a lot!"

"You want to take a reindeer with us to a desert land?" Addy asked. "Like how is that even a good idea?"

"If we have a doctor on our ship, we won't have to stay here for three days, right?" Nami said. Well she wasn't wrong but Addy wouldn't mind staying for three days. A lot can happen in that time. For instance, a country tearing itself apart. "On top of that, on our ship, we-"

"D-don't be ridiculous," Chopper interrupted. "I'm a reindeer! There's no way I can stay with humans and a-"

"Why ever not?" Addy asked interrupting him before he could give away anything. Doctorine probably told him everything and Addy didn't really want it slipping out.

"To start with, don't you get scared when you see me?" Chopper asked his voice going sad. "I'm a reindeer but I stand on two legs and I even speak."

"What?" Nami asked. "Are you trying to scare me?"

"Honestly, you are about as scary as a marshmallow," Addy pointed out. "I've run into goldfish more frightening."

"My nose is blue, too…" Chopper whimpered.

"There you are!" Luffy shouted his feet squeaking against the floor as he brought himself to a stop. "Reindeer!" Chopper quickly took off again as Luffy and Sanji were after him. Addy submerged herself in the tank, not wanting Doctorine's wrath upon her. Soon enough she came back into the room and picked up the chair that she threw to the floor earlier.

"Those brats sure are quick," she muttered sitting down in the chair. "I don't like it girl."

"What?" Nami asked her.

"Are you tempting my reindeer without my permission while I'm not here?"

"Oh? Do I need permission to make a move on a man?" Both Addy and Doctorine chuckled.

"No, you don't. If you wanna take him, go right ahead. But it won't be easy. He has a scar on his heart. It's a big scare that even I can't cure. The moment he was born into this world, his group and even his parents abandoned him."

"What?"

"Because he had a blue nose. He always walked at the very back of the group all by himself even though he was a new born child. And one day he ate a Devil Fruit and was treated as a monster even more." Poor Chopper. Addy felt her heart tug for the guy. "The reindeers fiercely pressured him to leave. He was no longer an ordinary reindeer in any way. Still, he wanted friends. So he went down to the village. As a human, this time. But his figure wasn't exactly human, either. For some reason his nose stayed blue, too." Addy imagined the villagers' reaction. How they must have hurried to grab their guns to shoot at him, not understanding what or who he was. "He didn't know what was wrong. Nor did he know what to blame. He just wanted friends, yet he was called a monster. He was no longer a reindeer. He wasn't a human, either. He's lived all alone like that." Without knowing love or warmth. Or the kindness of any hand. "Can you guys heal that scar in his heart?" And Addy remembered what she had once forgotten. What she wanted to keep forgotten.

"What's happening to me?" she asked pulling herself to the surface.

"I'm cleansing your body of all the toxins you have been pouring into it. Namely alcohol," Doctorine stated. "You should feel your body strengthen and your reflexes improve. Your memory should also be returning as well."

"No…" Addy whimpered clutching her head.

"Given the damage that you have done to your body I say you have been heavily drinking for over a year if not longer. Due to that damage, you have set your body back. It could take you years before you reach maturity. It will take at least a year for your body to recover to be at the state it should be at, barring any exceptional circumstances."

"Wait, I don't understand," Nami said. "What is wrong with her?"

"Essentially your friend here was dying of alcohol poisoning. Her body unable to process what she was putting in. Her organs were starting to shut down. The heart and lungs would soon cease to function. She would literally drown in her own fluids and not even the best doctor in the world would be able to stop it."

"But it takes years for humans to die from alcohol."

"Addy isn't human is she." Doctorine turned towards her and Addy looked at her straight in the eyes. "What she has been doing to her body is the equivalent of humans huffing fumes. The worst thing is that she knows it. You knew you were dying and you did nothing to stop it. You just kept drinking. Your body would have shown signs of giving out for a while now. You knew the moment that you left the vicinity of this island you were going to die."

"WHAT?!" Nami screamed the loudest Addy had heard in a long time.

"I-" Addy tried to say but Doctorine cut her off.

"There is no way you could not have known. After all you are able to detect the slightest change in your body, just as you can tell any change in the water. You are a nereid after all."


	91. Lost in Snowfall Part 7

_Author's Note:_

 _This chapter is either going to make people happy or disappointed. You'll see what I mean once you read through it. Let's just say that we are going to have to wait a bit longer for answers. For this one and probably the next couple of ones in the future there is going to be a warning for suicidal thoughts. As always please review and let me know what you think._

 _I do not own One Piece._

* * *

"I AM GOING TO RIP OUT YOUR INTESTINES WITH A RUSTY SPOON AND THEN HANG YOU BY THEM!" Addy screamed. How dare she?! What right did she have to tell Nami what she was. Once people knew it was always trouble. Nothing good could come out of it. It would only lead to misery.

"Addy is it true?" Nami asked interrupting her tirade. Her voice was firm and unwavering. Addy turned to look at her and saw the glare in her eyes. There was no way out of this. All Addy could do was nod her head and say yes. She was a nereid. Immediately she felt a slap across her face that hurt more than any blow she had ever taken. She saw tears trickling down Nami's face. Nami was really hurt by Addy not telling her what she was. Addy hoped that she could heal the damage and that Nami would understand what she was and why she didn't tell them anything.

"Explain everything! Now!"

"I promise I will." Once we are reunited with everyone on Merry." It was best if she explained it all at once to everyone. That way there would be no contradicting information. It would just be straight out of her mouth. "I think that it is best that they hear everything from me. I know it is a lot to ask." Nami was glaring daggers at her and Addy felt herself shrink under her gaze. "But can you not tell Captain and Sanji until we are all together again? Once we are back on Merry I will answer any questions that you or the others have." It would give her some time to think what to say to them as well as hopefully allow Nami's temper to cool. Maybe Nami will realize that Addy not telling them that she was a nereid wasn't a big deal. There was also the alcohol problem to contend with but they would understand when Addy explained it to them. At least she hoped they would. And with a doctor on board she could probably avoid most of the major side effects of drinking.

"I will hold you to that," Nami muttered. Her eyes were angry but also hurt. Nami's entire body was ridged and tense and Addy could see that she was trembling slightly. The sooner they got back to Merry the better.

"I expect nothing else," Addy replied. There wasn't much more that she could say at this point. She really had no more words.

"There is one more detail," Doctorine added in. "If you ever have alcohol again you will die."

"Wait what?" Addy asked. "You can't be serious?"

"I very much am. One sip and you'll be gone. Instantly. No chance for recovery."

"But that means…" Addy went quiet. All the memories would come back and there would be nothing she could do about it. She curled up clutching her head in her hands. Her world was falling apart. The alcohol was the only thing keeping her alive. There was nothing else that could combat the memories to come.

"It means that life will no longer be covered in fog. You'll see things for what they truly are."

"Your wrong." Addy was trembling. "You are giving me a fate worse than death." Everything would be a painful reminder of Riley. She could already feel it coming back to her. That hole in her soul becoming a gaping chasm. Now that everything was clear she felt everything with full force. There would be nothing she could do to counteract the pain. Doctorine seemed to have noticed and Addy could see her shoulders slump.

"Ah, that's why," she said. "It's a surprise you lasted this long then. Though you still should have told your crew what was happening. Save them from the pain, grief and guilt of not knowing. That is a pain that few can recover from." Coming towards Addy she pressed two pills in her mouth. Addy swallowed them without a fight and felt her body being pushed back into the water.

"These will help you sleep," Doctorine said. "Perhaps everything will make more sense when you wake up."

"What's going on?" Nami asked her voice shifting from anger to worry.

"She is suffering from a fate almost to cruel to speak of," Docorine replied. "One that us mortals can only just comprehend."

"What do you mean?"

"It's not my place to explain. That right belongs to her."

Addy could already feel the pills starting to take effect. Soon she was drifting off, hand clutched around her locket, as long forgotten memories became dreams.

…

She wasn't sure how much time had passed when she woke up. Felt like it had been awhile though it might have only been a few hours. She saw Sanji coming in with a tray of food smiling down at Nami who was looking better.

"In order for you to get a healthy smile back, I prepared an exceptionally nutritious dish," he stated proudly.

"Thank you Sanji-kun," she replied though there was a lack of enthusiasm. As if something was deeply bothering her. If Sanji noticed he didn't say anything. Addy knew that Nami wanted to tell him everything at that very moment but she refrained. Addy almost let out a sob. Despite all the pain she caused Nami was still doing what she asked. It struck Addy that she did not deserve such wonderful nakama. I's going to break their hearts when Addy tells them that there is nothing that they can do for her. She loved them all deeply but they couldn't replace Riley. Only booze could keep those feelings away.

"Though you're still painfully beautiful even after what your body's been through."

"Good Lord!" Doctorine grumbled standing in the doorway. "When did you use my kitchen without asking?"

"Madam, the roast over there is for you. It's high in protein and its good for rejuvena-" she kicked him through the window. Addy could hear the breaking glass. He slowly slipped towards the floor.

"I'm not a madam. I'm a sparkling single and still youthful."

"You're still 139 years old right?"

"Really? I thought you didn't look a day over 129," Addy snarked lifting her head out of the water. It suddenly hit her how the doctor knew everything that she did. Addy should have figured it out sooner. You don't meet many second-generation legacies around, especially second generation nereid legacies. Nami gave her a concerned glance though Addy could still see the hurt. Nami might as well have gotten up and stabbed Addy with a heated sword. It would have hurt less.

"Doctorine!" Chopper called out. "Help me!" Seems like Luffy was still chasing the reindeer around.

"Wait! Hey! Wait!" Luffy called after him as he chased Chopper into the room. Chopper jumped straight through the doorway causing Luffy to run straight into it and fall to the floor. The poor reindeer then ran out of the room in a panic as two jars rolled out with him. Luffy kept up the chase even as Chopper was hiding behind one of Doctorine's legs.

"What're you doing?" Nami asked. The two of them started circling Doctorine.

"This guy is going to join us and become our nakama," Luffy stated proudly.

"Oh really?!" Nami looked incredibly happy at this revelation. Addy didn't mind either. Chopper would make a valuable crewmate and now that Addy was no longer going to die that was something to think about. It then struck her that she would be able to live to see all her crewmates dreams come true. To see Luffy become Pirate King. But then she remembered at what cost. She gripped her locket tightly. Everything would come back to her. She could already tell that certain memories were becoming sharper. Details long forgotten rising to the surface.

"I didn't say that!" Chopper replied.

"You did," Luffy pointed out.

"I didn't!"

"You did!"

Be quiet both of you," Doctorine said. Luffy continued to chase Chopper around Doctorine before they left the room again. Doctorine turned to look at the fleeing reindeer and the crazy captain chasing after him. "Friend huh? How deep a meaning that word has to him. To ask without knowing that."

"Captain tends to not care about one's past but rather what they are going to do in the future," Addy stated.

"Odd words coming from you."

"Maybe but it is the truth." Addy started to pull herself out of the tank, making sure not to tangle the tubes. "Care to remove these? I'm going out to help my Captain recruit our next crewmate." Actually, what she was looking for was a distraction. Away from the memories that were starting to barrage her mind as well as away from Nami. The look she was giving her pierced Addy's very heart. Addy could only hope that she would understand why she kept her identity hidden.

"You still need to go through the detox process." Despite what she was saying Doctorine was making her way towards her.

"I assume that snow will help with that. Perhaps even more so." Doctorine grumbled but it didn't seem that Addy was wrong. Now that she was out of immediate danger the tubes could be pulled free. Addy felt relief as the tubes were removed from her skin despite the slight pinch. Pulling herself out of the tank fully she leapt onto the ground. She had to admit that it was nice not to feel cloudy. The fog was lifted from her very being. It was like she could feel again. Her hearing and sight were improved. Everything seemed crisp and clear. Colors were stronger, more bright and vibrant. Though her senses were still not as a strong as a human's. At least not yet. When she reached maturity that would change. Even her sense of touch was heightened. The floor didn't feel numb against her feet but like cool stone. It was almost all too much. Like her senses were being overloaded. She took a moment to take it all in and found the three of them staring at her. Docotrine looking at her with understanding, Nami with the same hurt look but at the same time relief and Sanji who looked at her both worried and confused. It hit Addy how hard it was going to be to explain this to everyone.

"I'm going off to find Captain. Try not to anger the crazy doctor while I'm away," Addy said heading out the same door Luffy left from. As soon as she did she could feel the power of the snow. The power she had before the detox was nothing compared to this. She hadn't felt anything like this since her and Riley…. She stopped and took a deep breath calming her wracking body. Addy came out here to find Luffy not to go down memory lane. As long as Addy remembered that she might be okay. Hopefully. Now to find Luffy. It shouldn't be that hard.

Sure enough it wasn't hard to find Luffy. After all he was running around yelling reindeer. He was in a hallway looking in every single room. Chopper seemed to have managed to evade him.

"Hey! Reindeer!" Luffy called out before spotting Addy. "You feeling better?"

"Much," Addy replied. "Any luck finding our future nakama?"

"I know he's here somewhere. Join us and become our nakama!" Luffy called out into a room apparently just filled with boxes. Addy wondered what they were originally used for. It reminded her of a time when she and Riley used to…

"Whoa!" Luffy said breaking Addy out of her daze. "That looks delicious!" He walked straight into the storage room excited over what looked like a bunch of fruit that he quickly started snacking on. "It's cool to be a pirate! Right Addy?!"

"Wouldn't trade it for anything else," she answered. Addy watched as Luffy tried to swallow the entire plate of fruit at once, including the plate. Luckily his body was made out of rubber so that he could stretch around it. He still started choking on it and Addy was about to panic when he pulled it out of his mouth and started munching on another pile of fruit. There really wasn't anybody in the world like him.

"Are you really a pirate?" Chopper asked coming out of hiding. He was hiding behind one of the many crates in the room.

"Hmm?" Luffy mumbled. "Yeah, I am. Like I've been saying, join us! It's fun to be a pirate! Pirates sing, too." Right because they were a regular musical troop. Addy was pretty sure half of them were tone deaf. Surprisingly her and Zoro were the only ones with decent voices, once you actually got him to sing and he had to be amazingly drunk for that to happen. Usopp could at least play an instrument. The others… well Addy wasn't expecting them to start a band anytime soon. It once again hit her that Luffy's definition of a pirate was rather strange. Since they hadn't actually committed any real crimes yet, the only reason they had any bounties whatsoever was because the Navy is a corrupt organization. Well they did destroy that tourist attraction in Loguetown but did that really count? That was more Buggy's fault than anything.

"What? Th-they sing?"

"Yeah. And they dance, too!" Addy had to give a little bit of credit there. The Straw Hats could dance, very terribly but they could. Sanji at least had some decent footwork but that was about it. Nami and Usopp could move to a beat while Luffy just went nuts. Addy wasn't even sure she had ever seen Zoro dance, though he might be good at it seeing the way he moves when he's fighting.

"You call that being a pirate?!" Chopper asked incredulous.

"That's right! And they go on lots of adventures!"

"Adventures? So pirates go on adventures then?" Some really strange and weird adventures but adventures nonetheless.

"Of course! Pirates risk their lives to go on adventures! You can meet lots of amazing people!"

"What kind of adventures?"

"So far?" Addy started. "We have defeated a Bandit King, helped out a guy trapped in a box, helped some guys find some gold that wasn't really there, stopped a guy from stealing a floating restaurant. At least I assumed we did. I wasn't fully there for that one. I don't know why Sanji would be with us if we didn't. Stopped some fishmen, got sucked into a hole in the sea, got run out of a tourist trap of a town, destroyed a priceless clock, saved a bunch of Sennernryu, got eaten by a whale, were tricked into helping a potentially evil princess maintain her dictatorship by transporting her to her kingdom. Which we are still sadly doing.

"Vivi is nice," Luffy interjected.

"Time will be the judge of that, and were almost transformed into candles. I think that covers the highlights." Chopper was just staring at them, eyes wide and jaw on the floor.

"You guys really did all that?" he asked sounding amazed and frightened at the same time.

"Yep," Luffy grinned.

And they'll do a whole lot more Addy realized clutching her locket. She would actually be around to see it all. Though at this moment Addy wasn't sure she wanted to. Without a way to block the pain death seemed like a more suitable option.

* * *

Musik Drache: Yeah so that is what she is. More details will be coming forth in the next couple of chapters.

Joseph Gontier: It did take a long time but I hope the wait was worth it. This is One Piece after all. As for the crew's reactions, your are still going to have to wait a little bit.


End file.
